'She had a heart of gold'
Marla Lambert had a heart of gold who could find the good in everyone, said her sister.
Lila Czmuchalek, the sister of Marla Maxine Lambert, 34, who was killed in Willow Place Wednesday morning, says her sister was a wonderful person with love for everyone.
"She would take a person and try to see the good in everybody," said Czmuchalek.
Just lately, Lambert lived for a month in her hometown of High Level with an old friend who is living with cancer just so that she could help out as much as she could.
"She had a heart of gold. Anybody who needed help she was right there," said her sister.
The family had seen the warning signs about a relationship she was in with a man but she kept going back to him, said Czmuchalek. She said it was often abusive.
Lambert had moved to Slave Lake just a few weeks ago to be with him but the pair had recently come to Grande Prairie and were staying with the man's brother in Willow Place.
Around 4:40 a.m. there was an altercation and Lambert was stabbed. She was taken to the Queen Elizabeth II Hospital where she died of her injuries.
Lambert was a wonderful sister who loved to sing, said Czmuchalek.
"She was a singer. She had the voice of an angel. At any given function or even just Christmas or sitting around, my dad would play the guitar and she would sing. Even without a guitar she would sing."
Lambert had three children, Alisha 16, Jaci-Lee 14, and Tristan 8. She had also had a fourth child who had died when two months old from crib death. The children had been living in High Level with their grandparents.
The murder has shocked the residents of Willow Place, a transition home for people with physical or mental handicaps.
Many said Thursday they were surprised to learn it had happened and were scared by it.
Many didn't even know it had happened until they woke up Wednesday morning to find police officers roaming the halls.
"It's quite a sight to see when you wake up first thing in the morning," said one resident who didn't want his name used.
"A lot of people didn't even know it happened. It's got a lot of people scared and rightfully so. Here's a guy who comes in the building and the next thing you know he stabbed and fatally wounded a woman."
The resident said there had been problems in the building with "riff-raff" being allowed to move in. It even got to the point where he said drug deals were happening in apartments. But he said the building had been cleaned up and the unwanted tenants kicked out.
The Canadian Mental Health Association, which operates Willow Place, would not comment on the murder but, in a letter to the editor, executive director Dalvin Napen said the building is a caring place.
"The situation was not predictable and it does not reflect our current community of whom we are very proud," wrote Napen.
"Our current community is one where we emphasize friendships, wellness and good judgment with respect to each other, the community and visitors. People help people and many of our tenants are vulnerable but thankful because they are rebuilding their lives personally and within a community that emphasizes wellness and friendships."
The Victims Assistance Crisis Intervention unit is expected to be brought in to Willow Place today to help residents deal with the trauma.
An arrest warrant was issued for Darrell Lee Ward, who was picked up in a Slave Lake residence Thursday morning without incident. Ward, 32, has been charged with second degree murder.
Grande Prairie RCMP spokesman Cpl. Brent Mundle said Ward and Lambert were in a relationship.
Ward will appear in Grande Prairie provincial court Monday.
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