Help Ms. Edna and Ms. Valarie Heal After Tragic Carjacking

My name is Ersula Ore. When I was a little Black girl growing up in Randallstown, Maryland, Valarie Smith was my next door neighbor. Ms. Edna and her sister stayed just around the corner in Pikesville. Ms. Margaret Ms. Edna’s mother is the one who taught me how to use stewed tomatoes.

If you know Edna and Valarie Smith, then you know what it means to be seen, to be looked after, to be cared for, and to be loved. To know these women is to also know that they pray just as hard, and just as faithfully as they fight. I would not be the woman I am today were it not for the words, time, love, and investment that these two women made in me.

Two weeks ago Ms Edna and Val were carjacked just outside of Ms. Edna’s home. At one point one of the three men pulled out a gun and threatened to shoot Val. Both Ms. Edna and Valarie suffered multiple injuries as a result of being dragged and then run over by the carjackers. Ms. Edna’s injuries were particularly severe, and included a punctured lung, and fractures in both her legs, her pelvis, and her ribs. Local authorities, neighborhood associations, and community networks are working together to get justice for Ms. Edna and Valarie.

I’m reaching out to ask if you can help me minimize the financial impact of Ms. Edna’s care. Her injuries will require multiple surgeries, therapies, aids and advocates, and all of these needs require money.

I know Ms. Edna would appreciate any amount you could contribute regardless of the denomination.

Help me provide for a woman who has provided for so many and who deserved so much more than what she got on August 21, 2024.