Misty Smith Walton Was a Good Human Taken Too Soon. Here’s How You Can Help.

The story of Misty Smith Walton is one that should grip us. It should weigh on our souls. Tragic tales such as hers should never be normalized to the point where we don’t have experience an emotional response. Her death should make us sad and angry. It should inspire the courage to demand change. But first, it should bring out the best in our communities, to come together and show compassion and generosity — that is what her children need from us today.

Misty and her husband heard their car alarm going off Saturday night and went outside to check. They were both shot in front of their Oakland apartment complex on Outlook Avenue. Her husband survived — she did not. Misty, a mother of two boys, was six months pregnant when she was senselessly killed.

The community reactions since have been heartbreaking. Family and friends paint a picture of a remarkable woman with an infectious smile who put her children above all else in life. She was the president of the Parent Teacher Association at her youngest son’s school. She was beloved at the schools and in her community as someone who committed her time and energy to helping out whenever she could.

Four psychologists were brought into Carl Munck Elementary School to help everyone there cope with the enormous sense of grief and loss.

John Sasaki, school district spokesman, said:

“This school is devastated. Kids, parents, staff, everybody is in mourning. ‘Miss Misty,’ as she was known, was a beloved member of this community.”

Misty Smith Walton. Photo courtesy of Aisha Johnson.

It’s a tragedy every time a gun takes the life of an innocent person. Gun violence never just impacts one life — the burden and grief ripples out to their families and friends and onto the public that lives in increasing fear that they or someone they love may be the next victim. It is an epidemic to the extent that we hear these horrible stories far too often and feel far too little anymore. Understandably, people are emotionally weary. But stories like this, lives like Misty’s remind us of what we are truly losing each time.

From every account, Misty was an incredible mother and a beautiful person. The life she lived should never have attracted such violence, and yet, it found her. That story should never sit well with us as a society.

Her boys, 8 and 11, now face a future without the mother who dedicated so much of herself to giving them a happy, healthy, solid start. An aunt is caring for those two grieving boys as Misty’s husband recuperates from his injuries in the hospital.

A modest GoFundMe account has been established to help the kids financially. We’re calling on our readers to contribute if they have even a few dollars to spare. It won’t bring Misty back, but it may help makes things a little less hard along the way. Let’s show her children that the story of their mother’s life, and not just her death, touched our hearts, that we wish them the best possible life they can have without her.

Rest in peace, Misty Smith Walton.