Fundraiser for Family Killed in McLean Surpasses $10,000 Goal

McLEAN, VA -- An online fundraiser was started for the family killed Friday in McLean and quickly surpassed its goal in less than 24 hours. It is believed that Hong Chen fatally shot his wife, Shirley Zhou, and son, James Chen, police said.

In less than 24 hours, the fundraiser surpassed its goal of $10,000 with donations of $18,650 made by 314 people.

The online GoFundMe campaign was created to help pay for the funeral of the Chen family, according to the posting on the site. Funds collected will go toward paying funeral expenses for the three Chen members and to the surviving family member, Sara Chen, a freshman in college.

Part of the page describes James, who was a gifted student at Langley High School:

"Everyone knew James as a kind, loving, and talented person. He loved designing planes, and he loved building helicopters. Wherever he went, he put smiles on people's faces. The death of James has had a tremendous effect on our community, and we are still shocked by this fact. We would like to dedicate this campaign to James. He would always lend a helping hand to others despite having problems of his own. He was a great person, and most importantly, an amazing friend, brother, and son. James Chen was a very good friend of mine; we have known each other for 5 years already. I remember when I was the new kid at school in the 6th grade, I did not know many people nor have many friends.

James, being the person that he is, came up to me and started a conversation. He introduced me to so many of his friends, and quickly I began to ease into the new school. Over the next couple years, we would grow together, we would take classes together, and improve together. In the past 5 years, we have done so many things together, from skipping 25 minute runs to singing in group projects together. The story of his life was a short one, passing away at the tender age of 16. James had so many ambitions and dreams in life that he was never able to fulfill. He told me just a week before that he wanted to be an engineer. His friends and I want to help preserve his legacy by funding the funeral for him and the rest of the family."

PHOTO of Chen family courtesy of GoFundMe