On Monday, July 4 – the day we celebrated the anniversary of our nation’s independence – a terrible tragedy struck one local family, not once, but twice.

 

Very early in the morning, 19-year-old Dahnasia Loy, a 2015 graduate of Liberty High School, was struck and killed by a motorist on U.S. Route 50 near the Sun Valley exit. For whatever reason, Dahnasia got out of the vehicle in which she was riding in and proceeded to walk across the highway.

 

The same day, just hours after that 3:45 a.m. deadly accident, Morgantown authorities responded to a 911 call and thereafter discovered the body of a 41-year-old female along the rail-trail near the Monongahela River. That was Dahnasia’s mother. According to police, there were no initial signs of foul play, but an autopsy is being conducted to determine how she died and an investigation is ongoing.

How or why either of those young women died is yet to be discovered, but my focus today is on those left behind. Included is Dahnasia’s sister Aaliyah, a sociality major at Fairmont State University. The devastation of losing her little sister and her mom to such tragic circumstances on the very same day is unfathomable. It has also left a financial burden on Aaliyah. A friend – Taylor Willis – has taken it upon herself to establish a Go Fund Me page to help with Dahnasia’s funeral expenses. As is so eloquently worded on the page:

 

“It's true beautiful people deserve beautiful funerals and being that her death was unexpected, all donations would go to the costs of the beautiful funeral, a beautiful headstone, and a beautiful family. Please help us give this girl the beautiful funeral she truly deserves.”

 

Aaliyah said she describes her sister as “the connection,” “a supernova” – someone who had an explosive presence when it came to forming relationships and instilling confidence in everyone she encountered. Whether or not her death was for a reason, Dahnasia’s life served a definite purpose, her sister said.

“Her laugh was everything. It was contagious. You could hear her laugh from anywhere,” Aaliyah said. “She was goofy and always made you smile. She knew how to lighten up the mood. There were so many inside jokes. We could just look at each other and know what each other was thinking.”

 

Not only was Dahnasia the perfect sister, she was the perfect friend.

 

“She always had our backs no matter what the situation was,” Aaliyah said. “Even though she was my little sister, anytime someone was mean or unfair to me, she’d put them in their place and stick up for me. My sister gave the best hugs ever. Just being in her arms gave you a sense of peace and happiness and instantly made you feel better. She was very kind and always helpful.”

 

 

This story has burdened my heart to share and to hopefully inspire support – financially, emotionally or spiritually – for this local young lady and her family.

 

Although she is certainly distraught and sad about her mother’s passing, it is Dahnasia’s death that most personally affects Aaliyah as she said she hasn’t been close to her mom in recent years.

 

 

If you feel led to reach out to help, you can visit the page established here: https://www.gofundme.com/2cpjc5we.

 

As of Sunday evening, nearly $8,000 of the $10,000 goal had been raised with well over 150 contributors.

 

Aaliyah said the financial help is so appreciated as even after life insurance, thousands of dollars in expenses remain. 

 

Julie Perine can be reached at 304-848-7200, julie@connect-bridgeport.com or follow @JuliePerine on Twitter. More "It's Happening" HERE.