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| Scarlett June Jensen. Photo: Samantha Jensen |
A spontaneous photo taken by a grandmother has turned into a poignant memory of a 3-year-old girl who tragically lost her life just moments later.
Samantha Jensen shared the heartbreaking image on TikTok, revealing, “My mom took this picture at 4:47 PM, and my daughter's time of death was 4:52. My mom didn’t realize she was capturing the last moments of her life. This one is really hard for me to look at, just knowing what comes next breaks my heart.”
In an exclusive interview with PEOPLE, Jensen, from Oldtown, Idaho, recounted that she was away for a wedding on October 7, 2022, while her mother, Jamie, cared for both Scarlett and her 2-year-old brother, Henry.
“That afternoon, they went to get ice cream and enjoy a walk together,” Jensen explained. “When they returned home to our driveway, Scarlett wanted to get out of her stroller to pick flowers. That’s when my mom took the last picture I have of her alive.”
As Scarlett walked in the family's private driveway, a Chevy Tahoe sped down the road, striking all three family members.
“My mother was waving her hands, screaming for him to stop, and she tried to grab my children to move them out of the way, but he was going too fast,” Jensen recalled. “Scarlett was killed almost instantly, and my mom and Henry were critically injured.”
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| Scarlett June Jensen. Photo: Samantha Jensen |
Local news outlets reported that the driver fled the scene on foot but was later apprehended a few miles away. Jensen shared that he is currently serving a 10-year prison sentence, with two years credited for time served during the court proceedings.
Meanwhile, her son Henry faced life-threatening injuries due to the hit-and-run.
“Henry was life-flighted to the children’s hospital, where they discovered a fractured spine, six broken ribs, a broken jaw, a broken collarbone, a liver laceration, and several other injuries,” Jensen detailed. “My mom had several broken bones but was eventually released from the hospital.”
Henry spent a week in the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit before he was stable enough to come home, wearing a full-body brace for 10 weeks.
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| Scarlett June Jensen. Photo: Samantha Jensen |
Weeks later, Jensen realized her mom had taken a photo of Scarlett's final moments.
“My mom lost her phone during the incident, and it took us a while to find it. When we did, I was going through the pictures and found that one,” she explained. “I checked the timestamp and realized it was only five minutes before her declared time of death, so it must have been taken seconds before they were hit.”
Jensen remembered Scarlett as the “long-awaited first child,” born on New Year's Day 2019, followed by three other children: Henry, now 4, Molly, 2, and Rosie, 1.
“Scarlett was the silliest, sweetest little girl,” Jensen shared. “She loved horses, unicorns, being a big sister, and enjoyed movies like Frozen and Spirit. She loved playing hide-and-seek, going to the park, preschool, and soccer.”
“She was supposed to have a soccer game the day after she died, and she was so excited to run around and play with her friends. The absolute joy of her life was her siblings. She loved helping care for baby Molly and playing with her best friend Henry,” Jensen added.
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| The last photo of Scarlett, seen here with Henry. Photo: Samantha Jensen |
Now, she reflects, “the house feels so quiet and empty without her.”
The grief has been overwhelming, with some days feeling unbearable and others more manageable.
“Some days, it feels like I am drowning, and some days I can tread water,” she said. “My whole family is working hard in therapy to heal as much as possible. My faith in the Lord has saved my life and helped me tremendously in my healing journey.”
Jensen has opened up about her loss on social media to show others that “it is okay to grieve loudly.”
“You don’t have to do it in silence. Talk about your people, scream their names loud and proud, and never stop sharing their stories,” she advised. Grief, she noted, is a journey filled with ups and downs.
Initially, viewing the photo of Scarlett taken shortly before her death was excruciating for Jensen.
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| Scarlett June Jensen. Photo: Samantha Jensen |
“It was extremely painful for me to look at in the beginning,” she admitted. “How do you come to terms with the existence of a ‘last picture’ of your child?”
However, two years later, she expresses gratitude for the photo: “I am so incredibly thankful to have that image. It captures the peaceful feeling of her last moments, the beauty she was surrounded by when she took her last breaths. I will forever picture her happy and carefree, picking flowers with her best friend and Meemaw.”
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