The family of a 38-year-old former gang member who shot to death by an unknown assailant in broad daylight Friday afternoon is turning to carwashes and a Go Fund Me Account to raise the money they say they need to raise for his funeral.
Family and friends of Monte Russell waved signs and yelled at slowing cars on Washington Boulevard on Sunday afternoon, urging passing motorists to get a power wash to help them raise money for Russell’s memorial service.
Russell died of gunshot wounds he suffered in a parking lot in the 1700 block of East Washington Boulevard around 5:30 p.m. Friday. Media reports said he had been in the area to get a haircut.
Russell’s mother, Yvonne Trice, and his sister, Kristina Haile, say that he had been involved in gangs when he was younger but that he had “turned his life around,” gotten a job in Altadena and was a responsible father to his young daughter.
Trice said the family does not money for a funeral, which the family has estimated will cost about $10,000.
Haile has also set a Go Fund Me page to raise funeral funds.
“We are all at a loss for words over this tragedy that has shaken us to our core,” she wrote on the page. “We ask that you help us lay him to rest in peace.”
The Go Fund Me page is called “In Loving Memory of Monte” and may be found online at http://www.gofundme.com/monterussell.