(PHOTOS) Family, friends mark anniversary of Quanisha Ball’s death
Quanisha Ball’s Emory co-workers are reflected in a memorial during a candlelight vigil on Friday, Nov. 17, 2023, marking the one-year anniversary of Ball’s death. Photo by Dean Hesse.
Greater Decatur, GA — Family and friends of Quanisha Ball gathered near the intersection of Scott Boulevard and Blackmon Drive on Friday, Nov. 17 for a candlelight vigil to commemorate the one-year anniversary of Ball’s death.
Ball died after the driver of a Dodge Challenger hit her as she crossed Scott Boulevard at Blackmon Drive. The vigil was held near the intersection.
Ball worked as a patient account representative at the Emory Winship Cancer Institute.
“Q worked at my front desk. I work at the injection clinic,” Injection Clinic nurse Shannon Franklin-Seay said. “She used to bring me my patients. I really, really miss Q. It just broke my heart. … It’s just different going to the front desk and Q’s not there. She was a joy. I love her. I miss her.”
Ball’s mother, Courtney Thompkins, has been working since her daughter’s death to push for improvements at Scott and Blackmon.
“We’ve been working with the commissioner (DeKalb County Dist. 2 Commissioner Michelle Long-Spears) to make some progress,” Thompkins said. “We’ve been helping to do some things at the intersection. It’s small steps, but it’s going. My daughter just didn’t die for anything, she’s saving other people’s lives”.
Thompkins said she’d like her daughter to be honored in some way.
“Maybe put a plaque or something there because she is really out here changing this community, and she had only been here for a year and half,” Thompkins said. “That really shows that her life does matter.”
Representatives from DeKalb County Dist. 2 Commissioner Michelle Long-Spears office attended the vigil (Spears was out of town and unable to attend) and gave an update on the Georgia Department of Transportation (GDOT) safety audit.
Spears previously said addressing this stretch of road is a priority for her. Her office is in touch with the Georgia Department of Transportation, and there’s a safety audit underway for this section of Scott Boulevard.
“We share the community’s interest in pedestrian safety, and we have been communicating with DeKalb County Police, DeKalb Transportation, and the Georgia Department of Transportation (GDOT),” Spears said in an email.
In terms of the safety audit, GDOT has studied the intersection and has a design for improvements that’s out for bid. Once that work begins, it will take about six months to complete, she said.
“The new design appears to greatly improve pedestrian safety and prioritization compared to the current scenario,” Spears said. “The project aims to provide enhancements to vulnerable roadway user safety and includes a new bulb out (which decreases crossing distance for pedestrians), new ADA ramps, and the installation of a new crosswalk across US78/Scott Blvd. The signal timing will also be enhanced, given the proposed changes.”
Members of the Medlock Area Neighborhood Association (MANA) also attended to show their support.
Tasha Pate worked with Quanisha Ball at the front desk of the Emory Winship Cancer Institute infusion Center. “I really, really miss her. During the times that we worked together we had the most fun times ever. Q taught me a lot, because I came after she did, so she trained me. She was just a joy. Q I miss you and I love you and you’ll always be remembered.” Photo by Dean Hesse.
Valerie Handy-Carey shows a photo of her daughter Brittany Glover during a candlelight vigil on Friday, Nov. 17, 2023, marking the one-year anniversary of Quanisha Ball’s deat. Glover died from injuries sustained after she was hit by a driver as she crossed Donald Lee Hollowell Parkway in Northwest Atlanta on Sept. 19, 2022. The driver fled the scene. Handy-Carey said it has been a daily challenge dealing with her daughter’s death. “I think about the person hasn’t been arrested. Where is that person? This gives that person the opportunity to kill again. Why hasn’t somebody come forward? Somebody has seen something. It could be a small detail.” According to a FOX5 News report, Atlanta City Councilmember Keisha Waites has put up $3,000 of her own money and collected $7,000 from eight other members of the City Council to offer a reward to whoever can help catch the driver. Photo by Dean Hesse.
Quanisha Ball’s mother Courtney Thompkins and Courtney’s father Rodney Smith, show body-camera footage of Ball’s death that Thompkins obtained from DeKalb County Police. “I put in an internal affairs complaint because I received the bodycam and it was very disorienting to watch. I’m trying to hold people accountable,” Thompkins said. Photo by Dean Hesse.
Sonia Tyler, Constituent Services and Community Engagement with DeKalb County Dist. 2 Commissioner Michelle Long-Spears’ office talks to people assembled for a candlelight vigil on Friday, Nov. 17, 2023, marking the one-year anniversary of Quanisha Ball’s death. ‘We can’t bring Q back, but there are things we can do to make sure this doesn’t happen again,” Tyler said. “The commissioner requested a safety audit from Georgia Department of Transportation (GDOT.) GDOT studied the intersection and introduced a design for improvements, which is currently out for bid. It’s going to take about six months to complete it.” Photo by Dean Hesse.
Courtney Thompkins looks at an image of her daughter Quanisha Ball during a candlelight vigil on Friday, Nov. 17, 2023, marking the one-year anniversary of Ball’s death. Photo by Dean Hesse.
Family, friends and supporters attend a candlelight vigil on Friday, Nov. 17, 2023, marking the one-year anniversary of Quanisha Ball’s death. Photo by Dean Hesse.
Family, friends and supporters attend a candlelight vigil on Friday, Nov. 17, 2023, marking the one-year anniversary of Quanisha Ball’s death. Photo by Dean Hesse.
Family, friends and supporters attend a candlelight vigil on Friday, Nov. 17, 2023, marking the one-year anniversary of Quanisha Ball’s death. Photo by Dean Hesse.
Monica Morgan, from the Medlock Area Neighborhood Association (MANA) Transportation and Sustainability Board (on left) attends a candlelight vigil on Friday, Nov. 17, 2023, with other MANA members marking the one-year anniversary of the death of Quanisha Ball. “We’re just trying to have our neighborhood and the area a safer more walkable area,” Morgan said. “Q’s death is just heartbreaking. I hate that this happened to anyone anywhere, but right on the border of our neighborhood. Our neighborhood would like to be able to walk to so many businesses nearby. There are so many destinations that are very close, but we can’t get to them. It’s not safe.” Photo by Dean Hesse.
Quanisha Ball’s Emory co-workers Shannon Franklin-Seay on left, Alicia Jackson (center) and Jackson’s daughter Alyssa Griffin attend a candlelight vigil on Friday, Nov. 17, 2023, marking the one-year anniversary of Ball’s death. Photo by Dean Hesse.
Family, friends and supporters attend a candlelight vigil on Friday, Nov. 17, 2023, marking the one-year anniversary of Quanisha Ball’s death. Photo by Dean Hesse.
Courtney Thompkins speaks at a candlelight vigil for her daughter Quanisha Ball on Friday, Nov. 17, 2023, near the intersection of Scott Boulevard and Blackmon Drive where Ball died after the driver of a Dodge Challenger hit her while she was crossing Scott Boulevard. Photo by Dean Hesse.
Quanisha Ball’s mother Courtney Thompkins embraces Sonia Tyler, Constituent Services and Community Engagement for DeKalb County District 2 Commissioner Michelle Long-Spears office on left, and reaches out to Valerie Handy-Carey, on right, during a candlelight vigil on Friday, Nov. 17, 2023, marking the one-year anniversary of Ball’s death. Handy-Carey’s daughter Brittany Glover was killed as she crossed Donald Lee Hollowell Parkway in Northwest Atlanta on Sept. 19, 2022. The driver fled the scene. Photo by Dean Hesse.
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