The January 8th Memorial
Mavanell Stoddard - Survivor
Symbols by artist Rebeca Méndez
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Dove
Strong / Resilient / First animal to leave Noah's Ark
The dove was the first animal to leave Noah’s ark, to return with an olive branch in its beak, signifying that after the Great Flood and a year on the boat, there was dry land to be found. Since then, the white dove with an olive twig in its beak, is considered a symbol of peace. It is also the value and virtue Mavy carries forth in her life.
Hohokam Circle of Life
“Dory died for me, I have to live for him”
At the sentencing hearing of the gunman Mavy spoke: “You took my precious husband Dorwan Stoddard. You ruined my life. When you shot him, he was saving my life.” She said: “I am so lonesome, I hate living without him. No one to hold me, no one to love me, no one to talk to anymore. (…) “We will never let you win,” Mavy concluded. “You will not take our spirit, you will not take our ability to love. We will never forget what you have taken; we made good come out of your bad. Dory died for me, and I have to live for him.”
Book
Passionate reader / 'My escape into other worlds'
Books have been Mavy’s lifelong friends, her top hobby. They have always been her escape into other worlds. Well into her eighties she still loves imagining herself being the queen in a make believe castle. The most important book however is the Bible, which she reads two chapters from every day.
Family
Matriarch / Mother of 4 daughters / Great grandmother of 14
A mother of four daughters, Mavy is now the matriarch of a family that includes 14 great grandchildren. She takes her role seriously, knowing she must be strong for them. She was deeply touched however when a granddaughter took a six week leave from her job as stewardess to help her heal from the injuries caused by three bullets to the leg. “My injuries healed,” she says. “But my heart is still broken.”
Christian Cross
"I may be the only Bible someone ever reads."
Without her faith in God, Mavy knows she would have crumbled after the shooting rampage that killed her beloved husband. She reminds herself daily that her words and actions must embody the Christian values. “I may be the only Bible someone ever reads,” she says, “you never know when the seeds of its benevolence are being sowed.”
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