(ATLANTA) — The family of 39-year-old Amy St. Pierre, who was killed in a mass shooting in an Atlanta medical center waiting room on Wednesday, is speaking out about their profound loss.
“Our beloved Amy was brilliant, kind, big-hearted and simply the ‘best of the best,'” her family said in a statement. “Loving wife and mother of two, middle sister to two brothers, and cherished daughter, she was truly our pride and joy.”
“An Emory honors graduate and Georgia State MBA, Amy traveled the world with curiosity and courage,” her family said. “She was driven by compassion, both in her work in the field of maternal mortality, and in her everyday life. Amy was selfless always, she wanted more for others but never for herself. Generous supporter of worthy causes, she was the social conscience of our family.”
St. Pierre worked at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Division of Reproductive Health, according to CDC Director Dr. Rochelle Walensky.
“She worked every day to save lives of mothers and infants,” Walensky said at a Senate HELP committee hearing on Thursday.
Secretary of Health and Human Services Xavier Becerra said in a statement Thursday, “Our hearts go out to her husband Julian St. Pierre, her children, and all her loved ones at this difficult time. Amy had been a public servant at CDC for several years and exemplified the values of our agency — her work focusing on improving maternal health.”
A CDC colleague told ABC News that St. Pierre was fun but also very serious about her work.
“Family oriented — that’s what we both have in common. Family came first,” she added.
St. Pierre’s family said, “She will be missed but never, ever forgotten.”
Becerra added, “We are all still trying to process this heart-breaking news. But there is no escaping that gun violence is tearing the American family apart and has become a public health crisis.”
Four other women were shot in Wednesday’s mass shooting and survived. Court documents identified them as Georgette Whitlow, Lisa Glynn, Jazzmin Daniel and Alesha Hollinger.
Hollinger was shot in the face, according to the documents, while Daniel was shot multiple times in the abdomen. Whitlow was shot in the arm and Glynn was shot in the abdomen, the documents stated.
All four of them remain hospitalized.
The suspected shooter is in custody.
ABC News’ Katherine Carroll and Sasha Pezenik contributed to this report.
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