Family Tragedy Deepens as Disturbing GoFundMe Emerges After De-a-ths of Grandmother, Mother and Four Children
DISTURBING details have emerged about a mother found dead alongside her four children and her own mother after worried neighbors reported not seeing the family for several days.
A GoFundMe page shared by Sarah Myers before her death painted a picture of a struggling but devoted mom trying to navigate a custody dispute while caring for four young children.
Sarah Myers, 44, and her four children were found dead inside an apartment in New YorkCredit: Facebook
A now-deleted GoFundMe reportedly detailed Myers’ struggle as a domestic violence survivorCredit: Facebook
Although the fundraiser is no longer publicly available, local reports said the GoFundMe was created by a friend earlier this month and described Myers as a survivor of domestic violence who urgently needed help covering legal fees and travel costs for a court battle in Utah.
According to local outlets, Myers put aside her pride to ask for assistance, saying her children were “more important” than anything else as she fought for their future.
The grim revelations surfaced after police discovered the bodies of Myers, her four children and her mother, Amy Steadman, inside apartments at the John S. Moore Homes complex in Mechanicville, New York.
Officers were called to the property at around 6.20pm on Tuesday after neighbors requested a welfare check because members of the family had not been seen for days.
Police have said all six deaths are being investigated as crimes but stressed there is “no evidence indicating the involvement of any additional individuals.”
Authorities have not yet revealed how the victims died, with autopsies still pending.
The tragedy has sent shockwaves through the small community, where neighbors said the family largely kept to themselves and the children were homeschooled.
One resident told WNYT: “A lot of people were outside acting like they cared, everybody was mourning as if they knew the people but nobody ever talked to them. I’ve never even seen the people, honestly.”
Another neighbor said: “Not so much today besides the road being closed down more so yesterday, with everybody out gossiping and being nosy.”
A third resident added: “A lot of people calling and checking on everyone here, actually. Pinging all through the night, people we don’t really talk to, just checking on us. I believe this case blew up.
“The whole of New York probably knows about it. People from Florida have called some of my friends to check on them. So I think it’s not only impacted Mechanicville, but the state and maybe further.”
The children’s father, Brady Harmon, said he received the devastating news from police at his Utah home and had been preparing to reunite with his children after years apart, Times Union reported.
Myers and her children were found dead alongside her mother Amy Stedman (pictured) inside Stedman’s apartmentCredit: Facebook
Authorities were called to the scene after neighbors called for a welfare checkCredit: Getty
Harmon said he had not seen the children since 2019 but recently reached an agreement with Myers that would have allowed them to spend the summer with him from July 1 through September 1.
“I went from I’m seeing my kids to I’ll never see my kids again,” Harmon said.
“Hope to hell. Things happen, but nothing like this.”
He said police did not tell him how the children died and insisted he could not understand what had happened.
“I don’t know,” Harmon said when asked who could be responsible.
Neighbors who knew the family described a close-knit relationship between Myers and her mother.
Resident Megan Reed said Steadman helped her daughter every day and that another neighbor was especially close to Myers.
The deaths have left the community reeling.
“Those kids don’t deserve this,” Reed said.
Another resident, Michelle West, described seeing police cordon off two apartments in the complex and said the scene was difficult to comprehend.
“It’s so jarring,” she said. “I never in a million years thought something like this could happen right here.”
New York State Police are assisting Mechanicville police as investigators continue working to determine exactly what happened inside the apartments.
Police are investigating the deaths as crimes, but no outside involvement is suspectedCredit: News10
Investigators could not determine a manner of death yetCredit: News10
