Mothers killed in Levittown shooting spree remembered: 'So full of joy and happiness'

As Bucks County authorities await the extradition of a 26-year-old man suspected in a violent shooting spree Saturday that left members of two families dead, attention has shifted to those who lost their lives.

Karen Murphy Gordon, 52, her daughter, Kera, 13, and Taylor Daniel, 25, who lived less than three miles away from each other were killed Saturday morning during the gun violence that locked down most of Falls Township for hours.

Murphy-Gordon's stepson, Andre Gordon Jr. is suspected in the murders and has already been charged with crimes in New Jersey that authorities said took place before and after the shootings in Bucks County.

Gordon, who also allegedly carjacked two people at gunpoint in Trenton and Morrisville, later barricaded himself in a Trenton home of family members and was apprehended about nine hours after the killings. He is in custody in Mercer County, New Jersey facing charges there and in Bucks County.

Taylor Daniel: Devoted mom of two young daughters

A Go-Fund-Me campaign created Sunday for Taylor Daniel, 25, has been set up by the director of the Langhorne daycare where one of her two children was a student. As of Monday morning it had raised more than $7,000.

Daniel was shot to death in her Edgewood Lane home by Gordon, the father of her two children. Her mother, Nancy, was pistol-whipped with the same AR-15 that killed her daughter, and two members of Gordon’s family, authorities said.

The violence took place at Daniel's home in Falls while her two children were present, authorities said. The children were not injured and Nancy Daniel was treated at a hospital.

Daniel’s 3-year-old daughter is a student at KinderCare in Langhorne, according to Donna Patel, the director who is spearheading the Go-Fund-Me campaign to cover funeral costs.

“This is truly a tragedy and a very heartbreaking situation for all of the family members involved, our community, and the staff at KinderCare Langhorne,” Patel wrote. “ Our hearts are broken and anything you could give to the families financially to help to support them at this tragic time would be greatly appreciated.”

Patel recalled how much she admired Taylor Daniel, who she last saw of Thursday when she picked up her daughter. They spent a few minutes together as they changed the girl's diaper, not knowing what the weekend would bring.

"She was an amazing mother. She was a single mom who dropped off and picked up (her child) every day on time....Thursday night, I was helping her out, just us at the center," Patel said, adding she had to stop talking while getting upset. "I am distraught and broken. No one deserves this."

Patel said she is helping Daniel's mother, who was hospitalized for her injuries, with making the funeral arrangements. The KinderCare organization is supporting her. "We're sending this out nationally," she said.

In a response to a post on her daughter's Facebook page, Nancy Daniel wrote that she and her granddaughters are staying in a hotel, and they cannot return to their home until the two doors that Gordon broke down are replaced.

Daniel's Facebook page, which made its last public post in August 2022, is filled with photos of her with her daughters, the oldest born in 2018.

It's unclear if Gordon and Daniel were still in a relationship since neither her nor Gordon's Facebook accounts seemed to include photos of either one of them together.

Gordon and Daniel formerly shared an apartment together, until they were evicted last year, according to public records.

Since her murder, those who knew Taylor have left posts expressing shock, sadness and sympathy for a woman they described as a great mom.

"I am so shocked and appalled to hear what happened today. Taylor you will be missed by so many people you have touched just by being their life," one woman wrote. "You made it so much easier to get through the 4 years we worked together. I wouldn’t of made it without you."

Another friend described Taylor as fun to be around, always laughing and a person who spoke her mind and was obsessed with collecting every perfume from the Victoria Secret's Pink store.

She wrote that Daniel recently married and was excited to "move on and start fresh."

"You just started being truly happy," the friend wrote. "I can’t believe I’m actually writing about how much I’m gonna miss you. I just wanted you to text me back. I knew something didn’t feel right. You always texted me back fast. I didn’t wanna believe it. I still don’t."

Kera Gordon: Happy girl and a wonderful student

The Pennsbury School District, where another of Gordon’s alleged victims, his 13-year-old sister, Kera, was an eighth-grader at Charles Boehm Middle School, continued to offer grief counseling. The district, with Boehm's Parent Teacher Organization is leading the effort, also is raising funds for funeral and other expenses for the family.

A 14-year-old sister, and two other Gordon family members were home when Andre Gordon Jr. allegedly broke into the home on Viewpoint Lane in the Vermillion Hills section of Falls where he shot and killed Kera and her mother.

The teen and other family members survived by hiding in the home, authorities said.

Kera was described as an excellent student, who just had a stellar report card, and as a talented member of the school band. Others said she was happy and friendly, often seen with a big smile.

Gordon awaiting extradition: Andre Gordon Jr., alleged Bucks County killer, faces multiple charges in New Jersey

Teen sister slain: Youngest victim of Levittown shooting just 13. She was a Pennsbury eighth-grader

“As we continue to process the events of Saturday, we are learning how many connections there are between the individuals involved and the Pennsbury School District,” Superintendent Thomas Smith wrote on the district’s Facebook page.

Smith wrote the district is prepared to support any student or staff member who needs it with targeted assistance available at Boehm, Manor and Penn Valley elementary schools.  Taylor Daniel's oldest daughter is a kindergarten student at Penn Valley Elementary, where the PTO is also holding a fundraiser for the Daniel family.

“We are grateful to the many community members who have reached out with offers of support,” Smith wrote. “You have my commitment that we will work to support our students and staff members during the days and weeks ahead.”

Karen Murphy Gordon

For the last three years, Shelia Griffin Umek has worked beside Karen Murphy Gordon as caseworkers at the Pennsylvania Department of Human Services in Bucks County.

They started in the same training class and sat next to each other since Day 1, Griffin Umek said.  At work, her first, “Good morning,” of the day always came from Murphy Gordon.

“She was my touchstone at work. Always full of encouragement and praise,” Griffin Umek said.

They were great work friends, sharing stories about their families, she said.

Murphy Gordon was the kind of mom who talked to her kids every day at work, when they were headed home from school, then to make sure they got home OK, and find out what kind of day they had, Griffin Umek wrote.

She loved bragging about her children, a son from a previous marriage, and her daughters with husband Andre Gordon Sr.

Last week Murphy Gordon showed off her daughters’ report cards, saying what good students, and great artists, they were, and talking about how they were school band members.

Murphy Gordon had told her co-worker she was going to help her mother with computer issues and last year she spent two weeks with her father in Jamaica, where the family previously lived.

“Yesterday I lost a friend and coworker to a senseless crime. I am devastated, heartbroken and so very sad,” Griffin Umek wrote Sunday in a Facebook post. “The news mentions her name and age, but really nothing else.”

But there was so much more about Karen Murphy Gordon than the way she died, she said.

“Karen was so full of joy and happiness. She laughed all the time, cracking herself up, I’d joke, ‘You’re having too much fun at work’ or ‘What’s so funny, I need a laugh, too.’”

Murphy Gordon would tell her, you have to laugh at life and problems — Life is too short.

Murphy Gordon was a U.S. Army veteran who served during the Desert Storm War, Griffin-Umek said.   She was smart, loved her job at DHS and her side business doing taxes out of her home.

“It’s hard to reference her in the past tense,” Griffin Umek wrote. “I am, as well as my other co-workers, still in shock. Please remember my friend for what she was, how she affected other people with her presence and love, and not just as a victim.”

She asked people to keep the Goron family in their prayers, as they will need as much love and support as the community can give them.

My last words to her were: ‘Have a great weekend, I’ll see you Monday,’” she added.

“Please keep all of her coworkers in your thoughts. Tomorrow is going to be difficult. I dread going in and having this loss solidly confirmed. It still feels so unreal.”

How to help the Gordon and Daniel families

The Boehm PTO has placed a note on Facebook saying it was "profoundly saddened by the inexplicable tragedies that have unfolded in our community" and was "reaching out to our community to rally together to help lessen the financial burden for this grieving family."

The PTO will accept monetary donations for the family.

"We can accept cash, checks payable to Charles Boehm PTO or Venmo (upon request). We would like to thank you for your thoughtfulness and generosity at this time. Anything we can do to help this grieving family during this difficult time is our priority."

For questions about the Boehm fundraiser, contact [email protected].

The Penn Valley Elementary PTO is also collecting money for the Daniel's family.

"We are reaching out to our community in hopes of lessening the financial burden for the family so that they can care for the young children that lost their mother this weekend," PTO President Trish Cartolaro wrote in a letter to parents. "This is the least we can do for a classmate of our children and her family.

For questions on the Penn Valley fundraiser contact [email protected]

This is a developing story. Check back for updates

This article originally appeared on Bucks County Courier Times: Levittown shooting spree victims mourned as good moms, student