Pam Washington

Pam Washington, 1980-2005
Darryl Milton, 1977-2005

Maria Montoya
Staff writer

When they were a little younger and a lot wilder, they did their share of partying and running the streets of the Lower 9th Ward. But Pam Washington, 25, and Darryl Milton, 28, recently were engaged to be married and decided it was time to settle down.

"Back in May, we were playing cards and she told me how she wanted to get her life right," her father, Reginald Washington, said. "I remember feeling so proud because she was so young but already lived such a hard life."

Pam, one of four female siblings, was still in high school when her mother and her maternal grandmother died within a few months of each other. Reginald said the deaths took an emotional toll on Pam, who gave up on her studies, got pregnant and dropped out of school.

Soon after the birth of her daughter, Whitney Washington, Pam returned to school to get her diploma.

"The whole family was proud to see her not settle for a GED," said her aunt Sabrina Alexander. "She wanted to earn her degree and go on to college, so she could get a good job."

At 24, the single mother learned that she was HIV positive. Her father said Pam didn't let the news detour her from pursuing her college dreams or her deepening relationship with Milton. After dating for a year, the couple rented a house together on Jourdon Avenue in the Lower 9th. Pam enrolled in the University of New Orleans for the fall semester and planned to major in computer science while Milton worked his new job as a dishwasher at a French Quarter restaurant.

"He said he was with who he wanted to be with, finally," said Patrice Milton, Darryl's cousin. "I remember thinking he sounded like he'd finally figured out what he wanted to do with his life."

As Hurricane Katrina approached, the couple considered evacuating. But they didn't expect the city to get hit hard, Reginald Washington said, and decided to ride it out at home and send Whitney out of the city in the care of Pam's sister Kim.

Darryl was a strong swimmer; Pam couldn't swim at all. As the water began to rise in the neighborhood, Darryl phoned his uncle, Terry Milton, to ask for help getting them out. Neither escaped the rising floodwaters in time.

"There's no way to know what exactly happened," Patrice Milton said. "We do know the barge now sits where their house once was."

Two bodies were removed from the site, but the Washington family is still waiting for DNA tests to confirm that the remains at the St. Gabriel morgue are Pam's and Darryl's.

"It's our family's belief that Pam may have drowned and Darryl had no way to escape from the attic," Patrice said. "We can only find peace in the fact that they found comfort in being together."

Published in The Times-Picayune