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'She was a champion': Vigil honors woman who lost her life to domestic violence

Amber Morgan's husband is accused of shooting the 26-year-old.
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INDIANAPOLIS — A prayer vigil Friday shed light on domestic violence and honored the memory of Amber Morgan, who police say was killed by her husband weeks after giving birth.

"We love you Amber” were the words echoed at the vigil before the community blew bubbles into the sky to remember 26-year-old Amber Morgan.

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Vigil to remember Amber Morgan

"Amber was love personified, she would go above and beyond,” said her stepfather, Matthew Officer. "She was just hugely supportive and just a beautiful person."

The young mother's life was cut short on June 1.

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Vigil to remember Amber Morgan

Her husband is accused of shooting and killing her in the 3000 block of Armory Drive in Indianapolis early that Saturday morning.

"We're going through a great deal of heartache and suffering,” said Officer.

He also said the family saw no signs of abuse in the Morgan's relationship.

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Vigil to remember Amber Morgan

"We were not aware of anything that would have led to this incident," he said.

Morgan’s baby girl Audri is just six-weeks-old, not even old enough to remember her mom.

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Vigil to remember Amber Morgan

"She was a kindergarten teacher but also had aspirations to be a leader. She had applied for our trailblazer’s program, which is where we build the leaders within our building,” said Valerie Miller, the K-6 Principle at Victory College Prep where Morgan worked. “We were hoping she would be a trailblazer come the fall."

The elementary school teacher was also a graduate student at Marian University.

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Vigil to remember Amber Morgan

More than 100 people attended the vigil held by the University to honor her legacy and shed light on domestic violence.

"Pregnancy and childbirth, that's when we see an increase in domestic violence, even if there wasn't domestic violence previously,” said Domestic Violence Network Executive Director Kelly McBride. "Having a safety plan in place is really key when you're exciting a domestic violence relationship."

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Vigil to remember Amber Morgan

McBride said Morgan asked family about getting a divorce from her husband and had planned to leave.

They hope Friday’s event gives survivors and family members the tools and support to prevent these tragedies in the future.

"What you should do is absolutely reach out for help. Contact an advocate, talk to a family member if you don't want to do that, they can reach out to an advocate for you,” said McBride.

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Vigil to remember Amber Morgan

"We're asking the community to lean on one another to find help, seek help, find better ways to cope, healthy ways to cope and hug your loved ones,” added Officer.

The family created a website Amber and Audri to help honor Morgan’s legacy and share resources about domestic violence.

You can also visit Domestic Violence Network for more resources.