LOS ANGELES — A memorial continues to be built in Madison Valley, where 80-year-old Ruth Dalton was killed in a car theft on Tuesday morning.
A steady stream of people flock to the memorial near where Dalton died to remember her and her love of dogs. Many told KOMO News they weren’t surprised she died trying to protect the dogs in her car.
Her family described Dalton as a hero, a breast cancer survivor and everyone’s grandmother.
“I hope she rests in peace. We all love her, everyone loves her, and I know she looks down on us,” said Melanie Roberts, Dalton’s granddaughter. “She was spirited. I’m not surprised in the least that she tried to make sure her client’s dogs were safe. She wouldn’t have thought about herself for a second.”
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Pictures, notes and dog treats surrounded the memorial, remembering Dalton as she always was – surrounded by dogs. Many expressed the same sentiments about Dalton, who they say treated all the dogs in her care as her own. Nisha Klein met Dalton nearly 28 years ago at her flower shop.
“She came to get flowers for a client whose dog had died, and that’s how our relationship began,” Klein said. “Every time a dog left this planet, she would come by and get flowers.”
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Dalton’s granddaughter also said that Dalton had been walking dogs for decades and opened the business to help finance her granddaughter’s private schooling.
“Her only goal was to pay for school, and this community accepted her and took her in and loved her like family, including her grandmother Ruth,” said Roberts. According to Dalton’s family, her own dog, Prince, was found dead on the Brighton Playfield after the carjacking.
“She’s reunited with my father, who died before her, and her little dog, who died the same day, and they’re together. I’m grateful for that,” Roberts said. Roberts came to the scene of the accident to thank neighbors and passersby who tried to intervene and help.
One of those passersby was John Ayala, who was working on a house in the area and rushed to help when he heard screams.
“I heard two very loud screams and kept hearing ‘Oh my God.’ When I got here, she was already on the ground. I saw a car speeding away,” Ayala said. Despite her best efforts, Roberts says she is grateful someone was with her in Dalton’s final moments.
“I want them to know that she survives in my heart, even if it didn’t save her,” Roberts said. “She had a lot of life left in her. People think she was 80, and oh, that wasn’t long. I probably had 15 to 20 more years with her.”
