Zeanie White was 21 years old, attending York College studying to be a paramedic. She had dreams that she was going to realize until she was hit by a bullet early Sunday morning as she celebrated the holiday weekend.
The barrage of bullets tore through the crowd outside 969 Gates Ave. in Bedford Stuyvesant. White was the only person killed, but four others were wounded.
"She was a beautiful person," Bell said. "Zeanie was always a joyful person. A person who always had a smile on her face, and she was a warm person, a caring person."
Police say there were a lot of rounds fired that night. Zeanie was killed and four others were hit or grazed by bullets, but they survived.
"These things that we don't want to deal with, but we have to learn to deal with because of the world that we're living in," Bell said. "We'll get through this, with the grace of God."
Now, there is a funeral to plan and a life to mourn. Zeanie's family can't make sense of it. When there are dreams and plans and hope, this outcome is impossible to accept.
"We know we need God's strength to get us through, but our hearts are definitely grieving and broken," Bell said.
Two other women and two men - including a wheelchair-bound man - are recovering from their wounds in the hospital.
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STORY BY: Eyewitness News reporter Jamie Roth
WEB PRODUCED BY: Bob Monek