CHICAGO (WBBM NEWSRADIO) -- A celebration of life event was held Tuesday at a West Side hospital for an employee gunned down last month while in a cellphone store on the city’s Southwest Side.
Pharmacy technician Candace Dickerson, 36, was remembered by Norwegian-American Hospital Chief Operating Officer Michelle Blakely as "a quiet storm." She said Dickerson "had this really small, simple smile, but she was always up. She was always available."
Dickerson was shot in the face and killed as her two youngest sons were with her in a cellphone store on 59th and Kedzie late last month. The 10- and 12-year-old sons, along with their 17-year-old brother and Dickerson's parents were among dozens of people at the event.
Dickerson’ supervisor Tina Spriggs said during the remembrance that Dickerson was so well thought of, that nurses would call the pharmacy specifically asking for her.
"Candace came four to five days a week and literally volunteered eight hours a day," she said.
Hospital President Jose Sanchez added, "Candace had the unique ability to lighten up a room the moment that she walked in."
The hospital has set up a benevolence fund to benefit Dickerson’s family's immediate needs and her sons in the future. COO Blakely said the fund has raised $10,000 so far.
Bryant Mitchell, 23, has been charged with firing the stray gunshot that killed Dickerson. He was to appear in bond court Tuesday.
Dickerson's father, Dwight Hamblin said he's glad Chicago police found Candace’s alleged killer, but he said, "We don’t want her to be just another statistic. We just want something to be done about [the violence in Chicago>."