Elaine and Scott Conley died just seven months apart, leaving behind four children. Today, their community of Topsfield, Massachusetts, wants to give children a better future.

“It’s unfathomable…and so horrible,” said Diane Fucci, Elaine’s 58-year-old sister. TODAY.com.

Elaine, 52, died on October 26, 2024, more than a year after being diagnosed with leukemia. Her death came about seven months after her husband Scott, 52, died of a heart attack on March 15, 2024.

Elaine, an occupational therapist, and Scott, 52, a detective with the Chelsea Police Department, shared four children: twins Aidan and Max, 19, Keira, 15, and Shea, 11.

According to Fucci, Elaine was the “fun and easy” sister who loved animals.

“She was the baby of five…when she was a child she had hamsters and mice,” she says, adding that in her childhood, “we could get Elaine to do anything we wanted – if you time her to do it.”

Fucci adds, “Elaine was a cheerleader, a great dancer, and she had a quick, and sometimes inappropriate, sense of humor that we loved. She was a truly kind person and her children were her world.

Scott, meanwhile, was an Army Ranger turned police detective with a “strong personality” and “always up for adventure,” Fucci says. “His big thing was taking the kids to Disney World.”

Fucci tells TODAY.com that Elaine was diagnosed with leukemia on October 8, 2023, her 23rd wedding anniversary with Scott. “She hadn’t been feeling well for a few months, but she didn’t know if it was menopause,” Fucci said. One day, Elaine went to the hospital with heart pain and was diagnosed with a heart attack, then leukemia.

Elaine began chemotherapy and doctors suggested a bone marrow transplant as her best chance for a full recovery. Some of Elaine’s siblings were tested to determine a suitable donor and Fucci was chosen.

Fucci jokes, “Elaine sent a message to me and our siblings saying, ‘Winner, chicken dinner winner…Diane is the winner.’

Elaine was admitted to the hospital for the March 23 bone marrow transplant (which took place a day after her birthday) and was trying to contact Scott at home. He was not feeling well and had been treated for heart problems, according to Fucci.

Concerned, Elaine sent a neighbor to check on Scott. He had died in his sleep, following a heart attack.

The bone marrow transplant was postponed until May while Elaine and her children dealt with Scott’s death. “There’s no way their little minds can comprehend this,” Fucci says, adding, “It’s so horrible.”

Fucci said Scott’s colleagues at the Chelsea Police Department were “a huge presence” at Scott’s funeral. She also thanks Topsfield police for participating in neighborhood escorts involving Elaine and Scott’s children.

In the months following Elaine’s bone marrow transplant, she was in and out of the hospital due to complications. “She couldn’t catch a break,” Fucci says. “Everything that could go wrong went wrong for her. It was just horrible.

On Oct. 21, during the last week of her life, Elaine’s spirits were high, Fucci said, adding, “She was so happy to be home and we sat at the table and she did her homework with Shea.” One night, Fucci heard Elaine calling him. “She said, ‘I’m sick, I threw up and… I have a headache… I just don’t feel well.’

Fucci called 911 and in the ambulance, Elaine remained unconscious. A CT scan concluded that Elaine had a brain hemorrhage. She died in hospital about 12 hours later.

“After all that fighting, that’s what got her,” Fucci says, adding, “It was shocking — it’s still not real for any of us.”

Fucci says, “Elaine fought so hard for a year to be there for her children and with Scott dead, you really can’t think about it.”

Fucci says the family’s “amazing” community supports the children as they grieve.

“Halloween was always a really big deal for Scott: he made all the pumpkins and was known for buying the big candy bars from Costco,” Fucci says. “One of Elaine’s friends had a pumpkin carving competition. There were probably 50 pumpkins…with tea lights,” lining Scott and Elaine’s house.

“I was screaming,” Fucci said. She says Elaine and Scott’s children’s friends also delivered gifts like stuffed animals, a scrapbook filled with sweet notes, skin care products, candy and gift cards.

Elaine’s wake and funeral were filled with children, Fucci said. “I have never seen such an outpouring of love.”

Fucci and her husband, who share two adult children, have custody of Elaine and Scott’s minor children, for whom people have donated more than $309,000 via GoFundMe. Fucci says his family is considering moving from Lexington to Topsfield so his nieces and nephews can continue to attend their schools.

“With all this loss, I couldn’t make them take one more thing,” Fucci says, adding, “They’re strong, resilient kids, but this is just too much for them.”

Fucci says Elaine and Scott’s children are his “first priority.”

“We tell them that what they see is an outpouring of love…it’s a reflection of who they are – and who their parents were.”