Family And Friends Say Goodbye At Nykea Aldridge's Funeral
CHICAGO (CBS) -- Hundreds filled the Cosmopolitan Community Church, at 53rd and Wabash, Saturday to say goodbye to Nykea Aldridge, the first cousin of the Bulls' Dwyane Wade who was shot to death Aug. 26.
The family treated the occasion as a joyous one. Mario Greene knew her through her boyfriend, David Harrison, and said she treated him as a brother, WBBM's Bob Roberts reports.
"This is an accidental event that occurred," Greene said. "But at the same time it was joyous on the inside due to the fact that there were uplifting spirits in there. Knowing that she's going to a better place and that the criminals were apprehended was also nice to know. It was a blessing in there."
Aldridge's aunt, Pastor Jolinda Wade, presided and offered the hope-filled eulogy. Dwyane Wade and his wife, actress Gabrielle Union, came and left without comment to reporters.
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Mourners were given an eight-page funeral program that included a host of family photos and messages from Aldridge's parents and children, as well as several relatives and friends.
Aldridge's son, Sincere, wrote a heartbreaking note that's included in the program.
It read: "I remember us walking to the park and enjoying each other. I miss you so much mom. When I woke up this morning, I wrote, 'I love you to the moon and beyond'…all over my folder."
Two men have been charged with murder in the shooting.
Aldridge was struck by stray bullets in the head and arm moments after registering Sincere for classes at the Dulles School, at 63rdand Calumet, as she pushed her newborn daughter Da'Kota in a stroller.
