Journey to Healing for Tamaya Smothers

Imagine waking up at 2am to the screams and cries of your child in agony, screaming that they’ve been shot but you are 5 hours away and completely out of reach! This Sunday morning should have been a day of peace and tranquility but was overshadowed by the darkest fulfillment of a parent’s worst nightmare!

Within 30 days of the 30th anniversary of her grandmother’s passing, Betty Smothers, the family has once again been impacted by gun violence. A quick one day trip to Houston, Tx to celebrate a friend’s birthday quickly turned into a complete disaster! A true case of being at the wrong place at the wrong time after making a stop to seek assistance with car troubles. The night turned more dismal when a car full of people pulled up and began firing more than 50 shots, one of which was an AK47, into a crowd of unsuspecting patrons standing in line at the food truck in the parking lot of a local establishment in NW Harris County. Her parents awoke to frantic calls from their child and her friends about her dismay and they quickly rushed from Louisiana to Texas to be by her bedside. Where they discovered that Tamaya had sustained multiple gunshot wounds in her lower back and legs. Tamaya was one of 5 victims that night (one of whom died on the scene) and included her friend, Amariah, who sustained life threatening injuries. 

Such a tragedy for this lovely, sweet 19 year old young lady who was completely undeserving. Having just completed training for the Army National Guard and missing her Fall ‘22 semester at Southern University and A&m College, she was excited to begin the Spring ‘23 semester with her friend so they could begin applying to nursing school together. They were planning to return to Louisiana the next day in order to prep for the start of classes when this tragic event unfolded leaving them both hospitalized due to the severity of their injuries. 

With a projected series of surgeries anticipated, in addition to intense physical therapy and counseling over the next year, the family will be faced with serious financial burdens related to this horrific tragedy. Your contributions will be used towards medical expenses and additional costs incurred during the recovery process. 

We are so very grateful for every donation during this difficult time. And even if you are unable to contribute, we hope this story touched your heart in a special way. May this encourage you to advocate for changes in laws towards solutions to this crisis of gun violence in our communities. 

Please, stop the violence!