Credit: @samjensen44/TikTok
Woman Takes Final Photo Of Granddaughter Just Minutes Before She Is Pronounced Dead
A woman captured the heartbreaking final moments of her granddaughter’s life just before she was pronounced dead.
Samantha Jensen, who lives in Oldtown, Idaho, recently took to TikTok and shared the image her mother took of her three-year-old daughter Scarlett after discovering it weeks later.
The girl’s mother penned: “My mom took this picture at 4:47 p.m. and my daughter’s time of death was 4:52.
“My mom didn’t know she was capturing the last moments of her life. This one is really hard for me to look at, just knowing what comes next breaks my heart.”
After hearing Jensen’s story, people were left deeply emotional.
One person wrote: “Sweet little soul. May she forever rest in peace. May her peace now be that of her family. Tragic.”
Another added: “I can’t even imagine the pain. To say I’m sorry doesn’t seem enough. When I see the wildflowers growing in the spring, I shall think of Scarlett. Rest easy, beautiful girl…”
“I’m so saddened to hear about your family’s loss. She was so beautiful,” said a third.
In an interview with People magazine, Jensen described Scarlett as the ‘long-awaited first child,’ born on New Year’s Day in 2019.
Following Scarlett’s birth, Jensen welcomed three more children: Henry, Molly, and Rosie.
“Scarlett was the silliest, sweetest little girl,” Jensen recalled. “She loved horses, unicorns, being a big sister, and the movies Frozen and Spirit. She liked to play hide-and-seek, go to the park, go to preschool, and play soccer.”
She added: “The house feels so quiet and empty without her.”
Grieving has its challenges, with some days more difficult than others.
“Some days, it feels like I am drowning, and some days I am able to tread water,” she admitted. “My whole family is putting in a lot of work in therapy and trying to heal as much as possible. My faith in the Lord has saved my life and helped me tremendously in my healing journey.”
Initially, viewing the photo taken just before Scarlett’s death was agonizing for Jensen.
“It was extremely painful for me to look at in the beginning,” the mother recalled. “How do you come to terms with the existence of a ‘last picture’ of your child?”
Now, Jensen is ‘so incredibly thankful’ for this photo as it captures the ‘peaceful feeling of her last moments.’
The tragic circumstances surrounding Scarlett’s death unfolded on the fateful day when she and her then two-year-old brother were outside with their grandmother.
Jensen was attending a wedding on October 7, 2022, while her mother, Jamie, watched Scarlett, and her brother, Henry.
As they walked into the family’s private driveway, a Chevy Tahoe came speeding down the road, striking all three family members.
“My mother was waving her hands, screaming for him to stop and she tried to grab my children to move them out of the way, but he was going too fast,” Jensen recounted. “Scarlett was killed almost instantly, and my mom and Henry were critically injured.”
The suspect fled the scene on foot but was later apprehended a few miles away, local NBC affiliate KHQ reports.
Jensen shared that the driver is currently serving a ten-year prison sentence, with two years credited for time served during the trial.
The hit-and-run incident left Henry fighting for his life while Jensen’s mother had several broken bones.
“Henry was life-flighted to the children’s hospital where they found a fractured spine, six broken ribs, a broken jaw, a broken collarbone, a liver laceration, and several other injuries,” Jensen explained.
Scarlett’s brother spent a week in the PICU before being stable enough to return home, where he wore a full-body brace for ten weeks.
In the weeks following the tragedy, Jensen learned about the photo her mother had taken.
“My mom lost her phone when they were hit, and it took us a while to find it. When we finally did, I was going through pictures and found that one,” the mother explained.
“I looked at the timestamp and realized it was only five minutes before her declared time of death, so it must have been taken seconds before the person hit them.”
Jensen has decided to share her story on social media to help others understand that ‘it is okay to grieve loudly.’
She encourages people to remember their loved ones, saying: “You don’t have to do it in silence. Talk about your people, scream their names loud and proud, and never stop sharing their stories.”
Since Scarlett’s death, a GoFundMe has been set up to help offset the costs of a funeral and the time the family has taken off of work.
You can donate to the GoFundMe here.
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