Crash victim's partner: 'She made everybody smile'
GIG HARBOR, Wash. -- A fatal crash involving a suspected drunk driver has a tight-knit community searching for answers.
It happened on Sunday night on State Route 302, a road known for treacherous conditions.
Candice "Cat" Baima, 51, was killed in the crash. But what she did in her final moment might have saved her daughters life.
"We heard the sirens go off, and we looked at our watches. And she was late, and my gut knotted up," said Tracy Langworthy, Baima's partner. "Something was wrong. Something wasn't right."
Upon arriving at the hospital, Langworthy was told her daughter would be OK, but her partner was gone.
"And they told me that Cat didn't make it. I told them to take me to my daughter. I had to tell my daughter her mother was dead," Langworthy said.
Baima was full of life, Langworthy said, and well-known in the community.
"She made everybody smile. She softened my edges," she said. "She would give the shirt off her back to people she doesn't even know."
Baima, a school bus driver for the Peninsula School District, had just gotten promoted to a full-time position.
And Langworth's training as a driver probably saved her daughters life.
"They found tire tracks as far to the right as she could go, to avoid being hit straight on," she said. "She would've done that for a stranger."
In memory of Baima, her fellow bus drivers covered their badges on Monday to pay tribute to woman who inspired so many.
According to Washington State Patrol, the driver of the other vehicle was 63-year old Marvin Moody, a man with an extensive criminal history. He only suffered minor injuries, but will be facing charges of vehicular homicide.
It happened on Sunday night on State Route 302, a road known for treacherous conditions.
Candice "Cat" Baima, 51, was killed in the crash. But what she did in her final moment might have saved her daughters life.
"We heard the sirens go off, and we looked at our watches. And she was late, and my gut knotted up," said Tracy Langworthy, Baima's partner. "Something was wrong. Something wasn't right."
Upon arriving at the hospital, Langworthy was told her daughter would be OK, but her partner was gone.
"And they told me that Cat didn't make it. I told them to take me to my daughter. I had to tell my daughter her mother was dead," Langworthy said.
Baima was full of life, Langworthy said, and well-known in the community.
"She made everybody smile. She softened my edges," she said. "She would give the shirt off her back to people she doesn't even know."
Baima, a school bus driver for the Peninsula School District, had just gotten promoted to a full-time position.
And Langworth's training as a driver probably saved her daughters life.
"They found tire tracks as far to the right as she could go, to avoid being hit straight on," she said. "She would've done that for a stranger."
In memory of Baima, her fellow bus drivers covered their badges on Monday to pay tribute to woman who inspired so many.
According to Washington State Patrol, the driver of the other vehicle was 63-year old Marvin Moody, a man with an extensive criminal history. He only suffered minor injuries, but will be facing charges of vehicular homicide.
