Memorial service set for slain Buffalo Grove mom, daughters
A public memorial service for a Buffalo Grove mother and two young daughters who police say were murdered by her estranged husband last month will take place Friday.
The service for Vera, Vivian and Amilia Kisliak will be held at the Community Arts Center, 225 McHenry Road in Buffalo Grove. The gathering will start at noon, with the service scheduled to begin at 12:30 p.m., followed by refreshments until 2:30 p.m.
Friends of Vera Kisliak who are organizing the memorial also have launched a GoFundMe online fundraiser to pay for the service, as well as transportation and burial costs. Organizers have said that Vera Kisliak's family lives in her native Belarus and would like to bury her and the girls to rest in their hometown.
As of Sunday, the fundraiser had collected more than $70,500.
"Once again, we would like to thank everyone who reached out, prayed and donated," organizers said Saturday. "We would also like to thank the (village of) Buffalo Grove for helping us with a place to hold this service for Vera and her daughters. May this be the beginning of healing for our community."
Vera, 36, Vivian, 6, and Amilia, 4, were found dead in their home Nov. 30 along with Andrei Kisliak, 39, and his mother, Lilia Kisliak, 67. All died from "sharp-force" wounds, authorities said.
Buffalo Grove police said last week the evidence indicates that Andrei Kisliak murdered his wife, daughters and mother, then killed himself.
The slayings occurred amid a contentious divorce between the Buffalo Grove couple. Neighbors said police frequently were called to the family's home, and Andrei Kisliak, 39, was arrested in late September on allegations he violated an order of protection obtained by his wife.
But court records show that on Nov. 1, the Kisliaks agreed to modify the protective order to allow Andrei to move back into the family home. A friend said that while Vera Kisliak often expressed fear her husband would harm her, she agreed to modify the order so that he could continue his relationship with their daughters.