CHARLOTTE, N.C. — On the surface, the family seems 'together,' but if you take a closer look, they've been ripped apart. In recent weeks, two siblings were killed -- in unrelated homicides.
"My niece and nephew did not have to die," Rebecca White said.
Khira McKinley just 23 years old. She was killed on July 4. Her brother, Kenneth Armstrong, was only 21. He was murdered on June 19.
The crime scenes were different, but they struck the same chord for their mother. She has now lost two of her children in just over two weeks.
She chose not to do any interviews, but her message was written on the front of her t-shirt: "stop the violence."
"I mean there are no words," White said. "I mean I was really at a loss for words."
There have already been more homicides in 2019 than in all of 2018. The latest coming Tuesday -- when an employee was killed during what police say was an attempted armed robbery.
Tuesday morning, a worker at a south Charlotte Steak 'n Shake restaurant was killed during an attempted robbery. Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police identified the victim as Darnell Harris.
Harris's family saying he died defending his coworkers.
"It's a travesty," Gwen Golden previously said. " I know that he was protecting a lot of the associates."
Wednesday, local support groups surrounded the Steak 'n Shake to pray.
"You're not alone," one person said. "We're here to help, and we just came out here today to pay our respects for the latest victim."
As for the grieving family who has lost two loved ones in less than a month, one thing is for sure -- they can't do this alone.
"We need help, we need prayers," White said. "We need support from the community, anything."