Months After Her Daughter’s Murder, Rhonda Pack Terry Searches for Answers

It’s been over three months since Ebony Pack was brutally murdered while sitting at a traffic stop in Lansdale, Pennsylvania. The 30-year-old nurse was known for her empathy and commitment to her patients. Now, her mother, Rhonda Pack Terry, is speaking up about the fact that the authorities still haven’t brought the perpetrator to justice. With few leads and scant details, her murder continues to confound the local police, and it’s not clear if the case will ever be solved.

A Family Tragedy

Ebony Pack was found dead just two days after Thanksgiving. She was sitting behind the wheel of her Nissan sedan at a four-way Lansdale intersection. Officers found her with multiple gunshot wounds just after 10 p.m. on Nov. 28th.

It’s a mystery that still haunts the local community today. Authorities are offering up to $10,000 for any information that leads to an arrest. Pack was quickly transported to  Abington-Lansdale Hospital, but died several hours later.

Her mother remembers her daughter coming home from work during the pandemic with deep grooves and indentations on her face from hours of wearing masks and other PPE on the job.

“Every celebration, every holiday since then, feels wrong,” she said in a recent interview. “I feel like I’m cheating her. Some days I feel like I’m moving on and I’m leaving her back.”

Terry now spends most of her time caring for her 10-year-old granddaughter Ava, helping her get by, now that her mother is gone.

“I just miss her, and this loss affects us in everything we do as a family,” she added.

The authorities believe Pack was sitting at the intersection waiting for a red light, but beyond that, details remain few and far between. It’s the first murder reported in Landsdale in 3 years.

Pack’s surviving family members remember her as the emotional anchor of the family. She was always taking care of her four siblings and showing an interest in helping other people.

“Ebony being who she was, I knew I could always talk to her about my problems,” said her 17-year-old sister Ryan, the youngest sibling. “I’m grateful that I got to know somebody that was so kind and good, and who loved me back.”

Her family also remembers Pack as someone who overcame obstacles in her life. She got pregnant during her first year at Holy Family University, which forced her to drop out. However, she didn’t give up her dream of becoming a nurse. As a single parent, she eventually became a licensed practical nurse with PowerBack Rehabilitation, which runs several facilities in the area.

Throughout the pandemic, Ebony Pack spent her time caring for COVID-19 patients at the company’s Southwest Center City, which helped with the overflow from local hospitals.

Her family says she was planning to go back to school to become a RN and open her own home care business. She mentioned her plans just days before her murder, according to family members.

The day of her murder was rather uneventful, says her mother Pack Terry. Ebony was supposed to take her daughter in the car with her that day, but changed her mind at the last minute.

“Ebony was home, she was fine, and she was doing her normal routine,” her mother said. “There was nothing that would indicate to us that someone would take her life.”

Looking for Clues

Over three months later, authorities say they are still looking for clues.

District Attorney Kevin Steele recently commented on the investigation during a recent press conference, “Not a day goes by that we don’t continue to try and solve this case. We want to make sure that we bring justice to her and to her family, and we have not been able to do that so far.”

Still in shock that anyone would want to shoot Ebony, her family is urging anyone with information to come forward.

“I just want to know why, even though there will never be a good enough reason for me,” Pack Terry said. “Someone thought it was OK to kill my child, to take Ava’s mom and my children’s sibling.”

At the time of her murder, local resident Lisa Cravener remembers, “It basically sounded like a pop pop pop and then that was about it and then we looked out the window and you could see the car.”

“You always hear these things, incidents happening you know in those areas, you know outside Philly and in Philly itself, but not here,” said local Steve Ulshafer.

Back in December, the police announced that they believe Pack was the target of the attack.

“Currently, investigators believe the incident was not a random act but rather Pack was the intended target,” police said.

Anyone with information can call 610-278-3368 to reach the detectives investigating the case.