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At a memorial service Friday honoring the Largo mother and daughter found dead March 16 in what has sparked an intense police investigation, friends and coworkers described the pair as special, caring people who are greatly missed.

More than 200 people crowded into the Lively Stone Worship Center in Landover to honor Delores Renee Dewitt, 42, who worked as a nurse in Clinton, and her daughter Ebony Dewitt, 19, a Largo High School student, whose bodies were found in a burning stolen car.

Red and gray urns sat on a wooden table in the front of the worship center, along with flower arrangements and photos of the women.

Many of Ebony's friends wore shirts with her photo, dates of birth and death and the words "We miss you."

"She was Ebony — everybody was cool with her," said Philip King, 18, of Largo, who attended school with Ebony Dewitt.

Another student, Daja Carlyle, 18, of District Heights, described Ebony Dewitt as nice, and quiet.

"She didn't bother nobody. She was a good girl," Carlyle said.

Darlene Walker, 55, of Fort Washington worked with Delores for nine years at Bradford Oaks Nursing and Rehabilitation Center in Clinton.

"She was a loving and great person — she did anything for anybody, even the person who killed her she would have tried to help them, straighten them out," she said. "She loved God, she loved her job."

A spokesman for Bradford Oaks said in a statement the center is "deeply saddened by the tragic deaths […] Delores was an outstanding employee who was beloved by residents and co-workers."

Walker said Delores loved to travel on cruises.

"She told us life is short and you need to enjoy it. That's what she did," Walker said. "She worked hard and played hard."

Elliott Spence, 60, of Cheverly met Delores on a cruise ship in 2007. Spence went on two cruises with Delores.

"She was very pleasant, [had a great] personality, was a lot of fun," he said. "She was just a real nice person."

The Dewitts' deaths made them the second mother and daughter to be found dead in the quiet residential area within two months, following the Jan. 26 homicide of Karen Lofton, 45, and her 16-year-old daughter, Karissa Lofton, less than two miles away.

The Loftons were found dead in their home in the 10800 block of Southall Drive around 2:50 a.m., after Karissa called 911 and told police she and her mother had been shot. She was able to give dispatchers her address, but by the time responders arrived five minutes later, both were dead.

Delores and Ebony Dewitt, who lived in the 9700 block of Cedarhollow Lane, were found two miles from their home in the backseat and trunk of a Nissan Maxima sedan that had been set on fire in a driveway in the 11100 block of Webbwood Court in Largo. The Nissan was apparently stolen that morning using keys taken from the car owner's house in a break-in several weeks earlier.

Prince George's police said Thursday the purses of Delores and Ebony Dewitt are missing, a multicolored Fossil purse and a black patent leather purse with a large Cadillac emblem in the center. Maj. Andrew Ellis, the police department's chief spokesman, said Friday he could not comment on whether the women's credit cards or bank accounts had been used since their deaths.

During a packed neighborhood meeting earlier in the week, Lt. William Rayle, commander of the county homicide department's criminal investigative division, said police are following 30 leads regarding the deaths of the Dewitts and have not ruled out the possibility of a serial killer.

Police are exploring similarities in the two mother-daughter homicides. The Dewitts and Loftons were both killed early Monday mornings, and both mothers were single and worked as nurses. Karen Lofton recently began working at Lake Arbor Elementary in Mitchellville after leaving Howard University Hospital in Washington, D.C.

Neither the Dewitts' home nor the Loftons' appears to have been broken into in connection with the homicides, and police have not reported that anything was taken from the Loftons' home before or after Karen and Karissa were shot.

The Dewitts reported their home was broken into in November and a television and video game system stolen, but police do not believe keys to the home or cars were stolen, and the break-in doesn't appear to be related to the subsequent homicides, Ellis said Friday.

The Dewitts were last seen alive early the morning of March 15, about 26 hours before they would be found dead, when a neighbor reported seeing Ebony Dewitt come home at 2 a.m. That evening, a family member went to the house and found no one was home but didn't report the home was broken into or that anything in the home was disturbed or missing, Ellis said.

Police have said there were no signs of forced entry at the Loftons' home or indication that anything had been stolen, and the Loftons had not reported any burglaries or break-ins in the weeks or months before their deaths.

The only confirmed burglary related to the two homicides is the stolen car used to burn the Dewitts' bodies. The woman whose car was stolen told police later that day a spare set of keys had been stolen in February from her Woodlawn Boulevard home. The woman saw the Nissan in her driveway at 2 a.m. March 16, but by 3:39 a.m. it was gone, and she called police to report the theft. Minutes later, police found the car on fire.

Ellis noted the manner of death, however, is a clear difference between the two pairs of homicides. Preliminary medical examiner's results have found the Dewitts weren't shot, as the Loftons were. Autopsy reports likely won't soon be released publicly as they are part of an ongoing investigation.

During the neighborhood meeting Wednesday, Rayle, the police commander, warned residents to make sure their home and car keys are accounted for and to lock windows and doors.

"The smallest minute details sometimes bring these cases to conclusion," Rayle said. "[We're talking about] an hour- and-40-minute timeline. Somebody in the community saw something — someone walking down the street, a dog barking. Anything would greatly assist."

Police have created a task force led by Maj. Daniel Dusseau, head of the police department's crimes unit, with police working in shifts 24 hours a day to investigate the two sets of homicides, and a safety seminar March 28 is designed to help residents ward off burglaries and attackers.

A $25,000 award is being offered for information leading to arrests in each case.

Anyone with information about the cases may call the Prince George's County Police Department's Homicide Unit at 301-772-4925. Callers wishing to remain anonymous may call Crime Solvers at 1-866-411-8477 or text "PGPD plus your message" to CRIMES (274637) or visit www.pgpolice.org to submit a tip online.

A vigil is being held at 8 p.m. Thursday at the Loftons' Southall Drive home to mark the two-month anniversary of their deaths.

Karen Lofton's niece and Karissa's cousin, Tonya Douglas, 39, described Karen Lofton as a hardworking person and loving mother.

"She wanted the best for her children and family. She was a supportive person," Douglas said. "Karissa was the same way."

E-mail Liz Skalski at eskalski@gazette.net.

E-mail Alison Walker at aewalker@gazette.net.