HOLLAND, Mich. — For Mandy Karolkiewicz’s family, Monday's public memorial service was a moment they had been preparing for since the day they lost her and her six children. But walking into the service and seeing their caskets and photographs made the tragedy feel real all over again.
WATCH: ‘It was devastating’: Family reflects on emotional memorial for Mandy Karolkiewicz and her six children
“It was shocking, it was devastating,” said Ellen Phillips, Mandy’s cousin.
Emily Jones, another cousin of Mandy's, said although their family had known the memorial was coming for weeks, nothing could fully prepare them for being there.
“It was reality. You knew for a month that this was going to happen, and then you walk in, and there is the visual reminder,” Jones said. "It was just very hard to walk into."
Mandy and her six children — Keegan, Bennett, Smith, Theodore, Caroline and Ella — were killed inside their Grand Haven Township home on July 24.
Investigators say Mandy’s husband and the children’s father, Kristopher Karolkiewicz, shot and killed his wife and children before shooting himself. Investigators have called the deaths a murder-suicide.
PREVIOUS COVERAGE: Investigators ID family found dead in Grand Haven Twp home, ruled murder-suicide
One month later, family members, friends, and community members gathered for a public memorial service honoring Mandy and her children.
“It was beautifully done, we could not have done it any better,” Jones said.
About 1,200 people attended the memorial service, while another 2,200 watched the service online.
For Phillips, seeing so many people come together was a reminder of the impact Mandy and her children had on the community.
“It was nice to see how they touched the community, and it was really comforting to know that not only did they have all those people around them, but now we have all of those people around us,” Phillips said.
The Mandy Karolkiewicz Family Foundation Fund has been established to support the Grand Haven community, including music and arts opportunities for students.
PREVIOUS COVERAGE: Grand Haven community to honor family killed in July murder-suicide
“Mandy had a beautiful singing voice and she integrated music every day into their everyday lives,” Jones said. “So the foundation contributing towards the performing arts in Grand Haven Public Schools is something that is a perfect, perfect fit."
Mandy’s family says the outpouring of support from the Grand Haven community has meant so much to them, and they hope the foundation will help carry her legacy forward for generations to come.
