Featured photo: Kiara Wilson-Patrick pictured with her children Qaejae Jr., Abriella and Skylar
Written by- Jameca Patrick-Singleton
On Tuesday December 14, 2021, Kiara Wilson-Patrick traveled to her grandmother’s home with two of her three children for a day of tree decorating, cookie baking and other traditional holiday festivities.
“My grandmother called me complaining that it had been a while since she had spent time with the babies; so I was happy to be able to take them to see her” said Wilson-Patrick.
After a day filled with activity, Wilson-Patrick loaded her (then) 4-year-old son and her (then) 2-year-old daughter into her black Dodge Charger and headed home. She decided to stop at a local convenience store to get some snacks for the children.
That stop changed their lives forever!
“When I got back into the car, I got me and the kids organized and then started handing them their snacks-when the first bullet struck my car” said Wilson-Patrick. “At first, I didn’t know what was happening. Everything was suddenly smoky, and I was confused. Then I realized that someone was shooting at my car, and my motherly instincts kicked in. My only thought was to put the car into drive and try to escape to save my kids”.
Through the chaos of trying to drive out of the line of fire, Wilson-Patrick hit a cinderblock, and eventually a tree. According to her, the scariest moment of the entire incident was when she thought that her daughter had been fatally shot.
“I kept hearing the pops from the gunshots, and I couldn’t see anything. I could hear my son screaming at the top of his lungs. So, I knew that he was alive-but I couldn’t hear my daughter. She wasn’t making a sound. I remember thinking that she was dead. It was the worst moment of my entire life.”
Fortunately, neither of Wilson-Patrick’s children were physically harmed during the attack, and she only suffered minor injuries from a bullet graze to her back and glass fragments that entered into her leg. However, the incident, which resulted in 11 bullets being shot into her car, still keeps her up at night.
“I know that it had to be some sort of mistaken identity because we’re good people. Neither my husband or I have any enemies. We take care of our family and mind our business. It’s scary that people just shoot at other people without even knowing who they are shooting at. My kids could’ve died. I could’ve died.
Wilson-Patrick said that for several months following the attack she suffered from extreme panic attacks and her kids kept talking about being shot at.
“Kids shouldn’t have to talk about gun violence. They shouldn’t even know what it is. (But,)OI thank God daily for sparing our lives. I don’t know what I would’ve done if something had happened to one of my kids.”
The Flint Courier is exploring the aftermath of violent crime in a three- part series. This is part two of that series.
