Grandmother killed in Orosi hit-and-run crash remembered at vigil
A beloved grandmother was remembered at a vigil in Orosi on Saturday. The 80-year-old woman was killed Wednesday when a suspect hit her with a car right in front of her house and kept driving. Investigators are still looking for the driver.
OROSI, Calif. (KFSN) -- It was a somber Saturday evening in Orosi where mourners gathered just feet from where an 80-year-old grandmother was killed by a hit-and-run driver. Now, family and friends are asking anyone with information to come forward about the man who took her life.
Salud Barragan is distinctly remembered for two things: how much she loved to cook and how much she loved her husband. She was actually on her way to deliver food to her husband at a rest home when she was hit and killed while getting in the car.
"Her bag of food was right there right next to her body. That's how devoted she was to her husband; she didn't let go of that food," said Christina Gonzalez, the victim's daughter.
Her husband still doesn't know his wife has passed, and family members say doctors are preparing for him to hear the heartbreaking news next week. Barragan's family says she spent most of her time in the kitchen to feed her nine children and 30 grandchildren.
"When I heard that she was gone I was just so sad that I nearly ran out of tears. I just miss her so much. I just wish I could see her again, just one more time," said Isaiah Garcia, the victim's grandson.
Family members say they believe the suspect is a man in his 20s, but investigators haven't arrested anyone since the accident Wednesday.
"I hope that they find whoever did this because they don't know how much it hurts," said Kevin Gonzalez, the victim's grandson.
It's a hurt so deep that the victim's daughter says she wants the suspect to feel their pain.
"I hope that you're tormented every single day by the pictures and the images of my mother and my words, and that it burns you inside so you or anybody that knows anything out there, any information, that it tears you apart so you guys can come forward. I beg you," said Gonzalez.
Barragan's family has created a GoFundMe account for memorial expenses. Anything beyond that they're going to donate to St. Jude Children's Research Hospital. For more information, visit www.gofundme.com/kqvq4k.
