20-year-old former NBC intern dies in murder-suicide: 'Her energy was contagious'

A Boston University student and former NBC intern was killed, along with her brother, by their mother in a murder-suicide.

According to NBC News, Erin Edwards, 20, who interned for local news station NBC New York, and her brother Chris Edwards, were shot dead by their mother Marsha Edwards, 58, on Wednesday in Georgia. After killing her children, Marsha appeared to have died from a self-inflicted gunshot wound.

Per a Cobb County Police Department press release sent to Yahoo Lifestyle, the family was found dead in their Atlanta home just before 6 p.m. on Wednesday during a welfare check.

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports that the father, Christopher Edwards, an orthopedic surgeon and chairman of the Atlanta Housing Authority board, who was divorced from Marsha, said through a family representative: “Dr. Edwards, his extended family and friends are in a state of grief and shock, and privacy of the family is paramount as arrangements are being made.”

An announcement from NBC New York stated that Erin had interned for the station’s digital team over the summer. “All of us in the newsroom are just shocked to hear this news — Erin was a special person, exuberant, cheerful...when her time in the news room ended, she was missed,” said a reporter. “But knowing what’s happened has been a very deep heartache that all of us are feeling today.”

Benjamin Berkowitz, Erin’s supervisor and WNBC vice president of digital, tells Yahoo Lifestyle in a statement, “Erin Edwards was a gifted storyteller with a passion for her work. Her enthusiasm was infectious and her smile lit up a room. She was an incredibly decent, kind person who earned our admiration. Her talent was truly God-given. All of us at WNBC extend our condolences to Erin’s family and friends at this difficult time.”

Describing Erin as someone “concerned about social justice,” Nancy Lowenstein, Erin’s mentor at Boston University, said on the school website, “Erin was just an amazing young woman; she didn’t let anything stop her. Her smile lit up a room and her energy was contagious. She was an amazing writer and journalist. She was just a wonderful person in our Posse [scholarship group], always supportive and there, kind and giving.”

And Boston University’s associate provost and dean of students Kenneth Elmore said the news “is a great loss for this community.”

According to the university, the College of Communication junior was a recipient of The Posse Foundation Scholarship, awarded to those with “extraordinary academic and leadership potential.”

Erin was to arrive at Boston University on Aug. 26 to fulfill a leadership position for community service and serve as ambassador for The Thurman Center, the university’s “cultural hub.” The university shared what Erin wrote in her ambassador application:

“I’m passionate about empathy. I believe empathy is the solution to virtually any problem and should be the first option when dealing with conflict. As a journalist, I try to promote empathy by sharing stories of underrepresented, marginalized people and uplifting their voices. I’m also passionate about community, because that’s what life is all about and that’s where it all starts — building community and connecting to other human beings.”

The National Association of Black Journalists (NABJ), of which Erin was a member, tweeted, “condolences, prayers, and thoughts” to Erin’s family.

According to NBC-affiliated station 11Alive, Erin’s brother Chris managed digital content for the City of Atlanta and was employed by the Mayor's Office of Entertainment.

Atlanta mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms tweeted, “...Chris and Erin were beautiful, vibrant and brilliant young adults whom we had the pleasure of knowing their entire lives. They filled the lives of all who met them with joy, compassion and kindness. May the peace of God, that surpasses all understanding, be with the Edwards family and all who had the honor to have known them.”

Read more from Yahoo Lifestyle:

• Florida sorority suspended for scandalous group chats: fake IDs, cheating, drunk driving

• School superintendent donates $10,000 bonus to help seniors pay college application fees

• Teen poses with ‘angel’ military father in high school portraits

Follow us on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, and Pinterest for nonstop inspiration delivered fresh to your feed, every day.