Family of 88-year-old shot to death in her home speaks out

BURIEN, Wash. — An 88-year-old woman shot to death in her Burien home earlier this week has been identified by her family.

María Teresa Contreras Herrera is described by her family as a remarkable woman and the heart of their family.

One of her grandchildren wrote a statement honoring Herrera, saying, “Our hearts are heavy, but we’re here grappling onto the love she had & and gave to us. My Grandmother was healthy both physically and mentally. We had no doubt she would live to 100+ years. She did not deserve this brutal, cruel ending, no human does.”

Herrera was found with a single gunshot wound after deputies responded to reports of a shooting by her neighbors early Wednesday morning.

Despite lifesaving efforts by medics and deputies, she did not survive.

Her family’s full statement is below:

We are not just grieving grandchildren but as a voice for a remarkable woman who can no longer speak for herself. My gramita as we used to call her was not just any woman. She was a true warrior, the most loving, caring person I have ever known. She was everyone’s dream Grammy, she was the heart of our family.

She was brutally taken from us in a place where she should have been the safest, our home. A place in where she helped raise each and every one of us, a place filled with countless memories filled with so much love. She like 13 other living residents including two children and a pregnant woman was sleeping when the massacre begun. This place where we used to call home has now been marked with evilness & cruelty. She leaves behind 6 kids, 24 grand kids, 33 great grand children, and 2 great great grandchildren and 105 other family members.

My Grandmother made sure she prayed for us, blessed us on our way out, every time we were off to work, the store, anything she was there at the window praying. Those prayers protected every occupant that horrific night, God saved us, she saved us.

Our hearts are heavy, but we’re here grappling onto the love she had & and gave to us. My Grandmother was healthy both physically and mentally. We had no doubt she would live to 100+ years. She did not deserve this brutal, cruel ending, no human does.

May any part even just a little part of this story touch your hearts and help us continue fighting for justice, for our grandmother but also for those you have lost due to violence.

May our grandmother rest in paradise may she continue showering us with love and hope. Te amamos con todo nuestro corazon Abuelita y nunca vamos a olvidar tus palabras, tu sonrisa, tu olor, el imenso amor que nos diste. Descansa en paz nuestra gramita hermosa, te adelantaste pero un día todos vamos a estar juntos otra vez.

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