On a Thursday morning in August 2015, 54-year-old Deborah Lynn Lemarr was arriving for her 11 a.m. shift at the Shannondale of Maryville senior living facility where she worked as a member of the dietary staff. As she walked along the sidewalk outside her workplace, she was approached by 59-year-old Erhard Wingert of Englewood. Wingert, who had been in a relationship with Lemarr, opened fire, tragically ending her life.
Following the shooting, Wingert returned to his vehicle and took his own life. The incident was determined to be a murder-suicide, stemming from previous disagreements between the couple, who shared adult children. The event sent shockwaves through the quiet community and the Shannondale facility, which expressed deep sadness over the loss of a valued staff member.
Deborah Lynn Lemarr, a resident of Tellico Plains, was a mother to eleven children and a grandmother to twenty-four. She was remembered by friends as a sweet and kind person. Her sudden and violent death left her family and community to grapple with the profound loss.
