Family members of Newark native killed in Charleston church speak out

CHARLESTON, S.C. (WABC) -- Sharonda Coleman-Singleton, who was gunned down during the Bible study inside a church in Charleston, South Carolina, is a native of Newark, New Jersey.

Brother Mark Jones Jr. and sister Jacqueline Askew, still live in the area, and they spoke to Eyewintess News.

Dylann Storm Roof, 21, is accused of fatally shooting nine people at the Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church on Wednesday night.

Coleman-Singleton, 45, graduated from Vailsburg High School in 1987 and attend Montclair State University before moving to the south.

She later received a degree in speech language and pathology from Nova Southeastern University in Fort Lauderdale, Fla. Most recently, Coleman-Singleton lived in Summerville, S.C., where she was a speech language pathologist and coached girls track and field at Goose Creek High School.

A vigil and march was held in Newark Friday to honor of all the victims, but for Jones and Askew, it is about remembering Coleman-Singleton and trying to understand her loss.

"Speaking in the spirit, she would say, pray for him," Askew said. "I still love you, and that's what I imagine her saying there."

The loss of their loved one is as deeply felt as the religion that helps them through these troubled times.

"Never imagining that my sister would be a part of that," Jones said.

Sharonda was a part-time minister at church, taking an active roll in all activities, including the prayer services. The mother of three -- a daughter and two sons -- was a speech therapist and track coach.

"She's a great individual," Jones said. "Great, loving individual, love my nieces and nephews."

Her son Chris Singleton is also speaking about his mother.

"I just say love is always stronger than hate," he said. "So if we would just love the way my mom would, then hate won't be anywhere close to what love is."

The family believes their sister and the others in the prayer group would not have questioned why Dylann Roof was there.

"Church is God's house, everybody is welcome," Askew said. "So why would they have even questioned it? It's a church."

Now, as they prepare for their sister's funeral, they remember the many memories, from her nickname Tookie to her days in Newark as a track standout to the proud mother and minister she became.

"She was probably trying to correct a soul," Jones said. "Or reason with this individual that what you're doing is wrong, but it can also be corrected."

They are both convinced of that.

"When they said there were words exchanged, she would probably be the one to reach out and say, 'baby you know what? God loves you, and so do I,'" Askew said. "That was my sister. She was full of love."