The pregnant wife of a pastor died after being shot during a home invasion in Indianapolis, police and church officials said.
Amanda Blackburn, who was also mother to a 1-year-old toddler, was found by first responder "unresponsive, and suffering from apparent signs of trauma" on Tuesday, the Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department said.
A statement from the Resonate Church, where her husband Davey is pastor, said she died at the hospital from a gunshot wound.
"My wife was such a beautiful, gracious, loving woman of God," Davey Blackburn said in a statement on the church website. "I have not only lost my ministry partner and support but also my very best friend."
He added: "Amanda made it her life's calling to love and serve everyone she knew."
The church launched a support fund for the family. Its website said the couple moved to the area in 2012.
"Our pastor Davey Blackburn came home from the gym to discover someone had broken into his home and his wife Amanda had suffered a gunshot wound," the church said in a statement. "She was immediately rushed to the hospital where she later died from these injuries."
It added: "Please join us in prayer for our pastor, his son Weston and their entire family during these hard days ahead. We have extremely heavy hearts and although we are hurting tremendously, we are still hoping and believing that great things are still yet to come."
Police say a nearby house was earlier hit by a burglar who took electronics and other valuables, although it was not yet clear if that break-in was connected to Amanda Blackburn's death.
"For something like that, such a brazen attack," neighborhood crime watch captain Ryan McConnell told the station. "It makes you scared. You don't want to live in fear."
Pastor Blackburn's statement added: "I hold firm to the belief that God is still good, that he takes our tragedy and turns it into triumph."
