An effort is underway to help the family of two young girls who were the victims of a murder-suicide in Phippsburg pay for the girls’ funeral expenses and memorials.

According to information previously released by the Routt County Sheriff’s Office, officers responded to a welfare check in the 21000 block of Fourth Avenue on Saturday and found the bodies of James “Jake” Hill, 45, and two children, ages 3 and 7.

The Sheriff’s Office did not identify the victims or Hill’s relationship to them, but reported that the case is being investigated as a murder-suicide.

On Sunday, Tera Sherwood Peterson created a GoFundMe page for the family of the two girls — 7-year-old Jessi and 3-year-old Summer — and posted pictures of them with it.

Over the phone Wednesday, Peterson explained she is friends with the girls’ mother, and Peterson said her daughter and one the girls were also very close friends.

“They didn’t have any life insurance on their kids, and it’s something that is very expensive to do and, you know, they needed the money for it,” Peterson said of her reasons for trying to raise money for the family.

Peterson said the girls’ mother lives in Cedaredge with the girls’ stepfather and brother. Peterson said the girls lived with their mother and attended school in Cedaredge, and were visiting their father when they were murdered.

“I really don’t want to get into too many details … but that’s the basics,” Peterson said.

By Wednesday afternoon, the GoFundMe page had raised more than $5,100 on a $15,000 goal. For more, go to GoFundMe.com/f/Jesse-Hill-7yr-girl-and-Summer-Hill-3yr-girl.

“Thank you all for the tremendous support and prayers for our family during this difficult time,” the girls’ mother, Tierny Pearson, wrote in a post associated with the GoFundMe page. “The girls will be home tomorrow and we will begin planning services. Thank you all, these girls are greatly loved by the community, love and strength to all their friends, teachers staff and family who are grieving.”