Shannon Vincel of Springfield, Missouri, will be laid to rest Tuesday. The breast cancer patient was sitting outside the guest quarters of Cancer Treatment Centers of America in Zion, Illinois on Aug. 15 when she was struck in the head with an unknown object by a man, the Zion Police department said in a press release. She sustained severe head trauma and died the following night at Condell Medical Center, where she was transported by Zion Fire/Rescue. She was 46.
A witness told responding officers the assailant was a black man wearing dark clothing. The Zion Police Department has made no arrests and is continuing to investigate. Cancer Treatment Centers has pledged $25,000 for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the man responsible for the murder, according to Kristen Gerlach, a spokeswoman for the hospital.
Vincel was a patient at Cancer Treatment Center’s Midwestern Regional Medical Center located midway between Chicago and Milwaukee, according to the police. She and another patient were waiting outside for the shuttle bus to take them for treatment and around 9:45 pm, the assailant approached from the sidewalk and struck Vincel in the head and ran away, the witness told police.
“Our thoughts and prayers go out to the family and friends of the victim,” said Gerlach, who noted Cancer Treatment Centers have increased their security presence as a precautionary measure. “We continue to support the ongoing investigation of the Zion Police Department.”
A native of St. Louis, Vincel was a graduate of Clayton High School and Drury University and a former manager of a hair salon, according to her Facebook page. Her funeral is noon Tuesday at St. Clemens of Rome Catholic Church in Des Peres, Missouri, said James Francis of the Lupton Chapel Funeral Home.