‘Just a real gift to the world’: Topeka mom’s death leaves hole in the community

Context: The attached video initially aired on July 24, 2025.

TOPEKA (KSNT) – A Topeka family is finding comfort in each other after the tragic killing of a local mom whose son was abducted

and taken to Illinois.

27 News talked to Jennifer Amyx, aunt of 29-year-old Ashley Brown, on Thursday, July 31 about the recent double-homicide involving her niece. Amyx said Brown was a devoted mother and a “force of nature” to her two-year-old son Zabe Mendez.

Mendez lost both his mother and grandfather, 55-year-old Sean Thornton, in a double-homicide incident that rocked the Topeka community on July 22. Family members of the homicide victims are now taking action by launching a fundraiser to help Mendez with everything from daycare to education costs.

“I have so many,” Amyx said when asked what her favorite memory of Brown is. “I am instantly flooded. My niece was so beautiful, so warm, so loving, just a real gift to the world. One of her favorite sayings that she took with her throughout her life is just when the caterpillar thought the world was about to end, she became a butterfly and Ashley was a beautiful butterfly in this world. So, I’d like people to remember her community service, her love of animals, and what a great mom she was to her boy, and an amazing big sister to everyone in her family.”

Brown’s family is set to hold a celebration of life ceremony for her in August. You can find a link to Mendez’s GoFundMe by clicking here.

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