Carter died 3 days before she would have started the third grade.
CAMDEN -- Gabrielle Hill Carter, 8, would have had her first day of third grade at the Camden Community Charter School Monday.
Gabrielle Hill Carter (Camden County Police Department)Carter died three days earlier after being shot in the head Wednesday evening in front of her home on South 8th Street. Authorities say she was not the intended target but was hit in crossfire.
And while her family is mourning the loss of the fun-loving girl, the couple whose company runs the charter school she attended is hoping to lessen their burden a bit by paying for the child's funeral.
"It's just an unbelievable and terrible situation," said Vahan H. Gureghian, CEO of CSMI Education Management Inc.
Gureghian say he and his wife and business partner, Danielle, at first wanted to donate to increase the reward that was being offered for information about the shooting.
They doubled the $6,000 that was being offered last week. By Sunday, with a donation from the Norcross family, the reward had increased to $50,000.
Girl hit in crossfire on same street where she played
But after hearing that Carter had died, the Gureghians wanted to do more.
"The family wasn't in a position to pay all the funeral expenses," Gureghian said Monday. "We thought in their time of sorrow, my wife and I could take that burden off their hands."
He said he contacted Camden Mayor Dana Redd and Camden Police Chief Scott Thomson about extending the offer to the Carter family on his behalf. He said he hasn't heard back through those channels from the family. He also hasn't heard anything about the funeral arrangements, including when they might be.
An uncle of Gabrielle Hill Carter on Sunday started a Gofundme campaign to raise funds to help pay for the funeral. Over $1,000 had been donated to it by Monday.
Meanwhile, the Camden Community Charter School is offering counseling to students who, on their first day back in class, may be missing their friend or just grappling with the shooting of a peer.
"It's the first day," he said of the 3-year-old school on Linden Street. "Usually everyone is happy and bubbly and just happy to be back."
Gureghian said he is disappointed that despite the big reward being offered, authorities have said that not much information is coming in about the shooting.
"I certainly hope that at the end of the day, the perpetrator is brought to justice. This is just a total disregard for human life, to drive down a street shooting," he said. "I'm just hoping someone saw something or has some clue."
Anyone with information is asked to call Camden County police at 215-546-TIPS or 877-345-TIPS.
Rebecca Everett may be reached at reverett@njadvancemedia.com. Follow her on Twitter @rebeccajeverett. Find NJ.com on Facebook.