“walking home from a youth gathering at church with two of his friends when he was shot and killed”

Ryan Realbuto via GoFundMe

Thanks to Brooke for sharing this super sad news.

The GoFundMe says:

“On Thursday evening January 18, my precious nephew Ryan Realbuto was walking home from a youth gathering at church with two of his friends when he was shot and killed. While they were walking, a car pulled up, the men asked for money, one person got out of the car, and when no one produced any cash, the person shot Ryan. His roommate pressed on his wound and called 911, however Ryan died shortly after at a local hospital.

Ryan spent his too short of a life serving others in need. In 2023, he graduated Cum Laude from St. Bonaventure University. Upon graduating, he moved to Washington D.C. to begin working with The Capuchin Franciscan Volunteer Corps. The organization places volunteers in underserved neighborhoods, concentrating on education, social services and health care. The group’s motto is “living simply,” and the volunteers each get a small monthly stipend and live in a communal residence, sharing the highs and lows of their day, learning of the cycle of poverty from each other’s experiences, and how to break it. Ryan was assigned to Don Bosco Cristo Rey High School, a Catholic college-preparatory school just outside D.C. that helps at-risk students in a work-study program.

Ryan was very passionate about doing any sort of community service. He was not motivated by making large sums of money, but instead thrived being able to help people in need.

Ryan’s love for community service began at an early age when he was active in the Youth Group at Church of the Transfiguration in Pittsford. In 2019, he graduated from Pittsford-Mendon High School where he was an active member of the Interact Club and served on the club’s leadership team. He logged more hours of service than any of its members during both his sophomore and junior years.

Ryan truly did have a caring heart and helping hands. He had a special concern for young people with disabilities and assisted at many Special Olympics events including the State Winter Games in Rochester. In recognition of his service, he was asked to represent his club at the the groundbreaking ceremony for the Golisano Training Center at Nazareth University in June, 2018.”

Ryan had a gentle soul and was a kind human being filled with nothing but innocence. Our hearts are completely broken by this devastating loss. All that Ryan was trying to do was help people and his precious life was taken by senseless violence. Ryan was too good and unique a human being to be remembered for the pain left by his absence.

We are raising money for my sister, Janet, and my brother-in-law, Pippo, to be able to cover the unthinkable, completely unplanned costs of his medical expenses as surgeons tried desperately to save his life, the transportation of getting Ryan’s body back to Rochester, legal fees they will incur throughout the investigation, and the funeral costs of burying their son. These are costs no parent could ever be prepared to pay on top of grieving their loss.

Our hearts are completely broken and the pain we feel is one that cannot be described.

Your generosity and concern are greatly appreciated.”

From MPD:

“Detectives from the Metropolitan Police Department’s Homicide Branch are investigating a shooting that killed a man in Northeast D.C.

On Thursday, January 18, 2024, at approximately 10:04 p.m., members of the Metropolitan Police Department’s Fourth District responded to the 5000 block of South Dakota Avenue, Northeast, for the report of a shooting. Upon arrival, officers located a man with gunshot wound injuries. He was taken to a local hospital where he died.

The victim has been identified as 23-year-old Ryan Realbuto, of Pittsford, NY.

The Metropolitan Police Department currently offers a reward of up to $25,000 to anyone that provides information which leads to the arrest and conviction of the person or persons responsible for each homicide committed in the District of Columbia. Anyone with information about this case is asked to call the police at 202-727-9099. Additionally, anonymous information may be submitted to the department’s TEXT TIP LINE by sending a text message to 50411.”