RICHMOND, Maine — The small town of Richmond was shocked Nov. 2 when police found the bodies of two residents in their apartment on Main Street.
Robin Bowler, 47, had lived in Richmond for years, and her son, daughter, and grandchildren live nearby. The body of Dana Shulman, 49, was also found in the apartment that day.
Police say they await results of a toxicology test to determine how Bowler died but said Shulman died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound. They have said they do not believe anyone else was involved and there is no risk to the public.
Much of the town continues to grieve for Bowler, including Brittany Caswell, a local firefighter who became friends with Bowler's son, Ricky Pinkham, when they worked together at Goodall Landscaping.
"When I think of someone, as far as their personality, I always look at their children," Caswell said. "Ricky shined bright compared with others. I met his mother a couple of times and she was nothing but a sweetheart every time I met her."
So Caswell organized a bottle drive to help Bowler's Pinkham and Pierce pay for their mother's funeral expenses.
She said she told Pinkham that he and Pierce should be able to mourn during this time rather than worry about expenses.
As of midday Monday, Caswell estimated about 200 bags of bottles filled her backyard.
Then Luke Korineck and his girlfriend, Mackenzie Abbott, dropped off another 10 bags.
"To see communities come together during such a hardship is truly beautiful," Caswell wrote, in part, in a Facebook post.
She asks people to drop bags of bottles at her house, at 4 Lincoln St. in Richmond, between now and Nov. 20.
When the fundraiser ends on the 20th, Caswell will take the bottles -- in dump trucks borrowed from her boss, Ben Goodall of Goodall Landscaping -- to a redemption center. Then Bowler's son and daughter will be able to go pick up the cash.
Brook Smith, a friend of Pierce's, has also established a GoFundMe account to help with expenses. As of early Monday afternoon, $4,405 of the page's goal of $10,000 had been raised.
