‘Missing my baby’: The victims of the Virginia Walmart mass shooting
CHESAPEAKE, Va. — A custodian and father of two. A mother with wedding plans. A happy-go-lucky guy.
That’s how friends and family described some of the six people killed at a Walmart in Chesapeake, Va., when a manager opened fire with a handgun right before an employee meeting Tuesday night. Five adults have been identified among those shot dead, while authorities have not released the name of the sixth person killed, a 16-year-old boy.
The gunman was also found dead after he apparently shot himself.
Here are some details about those who were lost:
Kellie Pyle, 52, of Chesapeake
Pyle was remembered as a generous and kind person, a mother who had wedding plans in the near future.
“We love her,†said Gwendolyn Bowe Baker Spencer. “She was going to marry my son next year. She was an awesome, kind individual — yes, she was.â€
Pyle had adult children in Kentucky who will be traveling to Virginia in the wake of the tragedy, Spencer said.
Brian Pendleton, 38, of Chesapeake
Pendleton made sure to be punctual. Although his shift as a custodian started at 10:30 p.m., he was in the break room when the shooting started just after 10, according to his mother, Michelle Johnson.
“He always came to work early so he would be on time for work,†she told the Associated Press on Wednesday. “He liked his co-workers.â€
Pendleton had recently celebrated his 10-year anniversary working at the store.
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His mother said he didn’t have any problems at work, except with a supervisor, Andre Bing, who was identified as the gunman.
“He just didn’t like my son,†Johnson said. “He would tell me that he [Bing] would give him a hard time.â€
Pendleton was born with a congenital brain disorder and grew up in Chesapeake, his mother said.
“He called me yesterday before he was going to work,†Johnson said. “I always tell him to call me when [he] gets off work.â€
As she was getting ready for bed, Johnson received a call from a family friend telling her there had been a shooting at the Walmart.
“Brian was a happy-go-lucky guy. Brian loved family. Brian loved friends. He loved to tell jokes,†his mother said. “We’re going to miss him.â€
Lorenzo Gamble, 43, of Chesapeake
Gamble was a custodian on the overnight shift and had worked at Walmart for 15 years, the Washington Post reported.
His parents, Linda and Alonzo Gamble, said he loved spending time with his two sons.
“He just kept to himself and did his job,†Linda Gamble said. “He was the quiet one of the family.â€
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His mother said Gamble enjoyed going to his 19-year-old’s football games and cheering for the Washington Commanders football team.
She posted on Facebook that she’s having trouble saying goodbye.
“Missing my baby right now, life is not same without my son,†she wrote.
Randy Blevins, 70, of Chesapeake
Blevins was a longtime member of the store’s team that set prices and arranged merchandise, the New York Times reported.
Former co-worker Shaundrayia Reese, who said she worked at the store from around 2015 to 2018, spoke fondly of Blevins as “Mr. Randy.â€
She said that the overnight crew members at the store were “a family†and that employees relied on one another.
Tyneka Johnson, 22, of Portsmouth, Va.
A makeshift memorial to Johnson was placed in a grassy area outside the Walmart, with the words “Our Hearts are with you†and a basket of flowers.
The remembrance included a cluster of blue, white and gold balloons tied to a tree, alongside a stark yellow line of police tape.
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