“As if losing a piece of yourself”: family remembers man who was killed in “apparently unprovoked” shootings in Spokane
Michael Lindblom was shot dead in an “apparently unprovoked” attack, Spokane police said. He was 24.
SPOKANE, Washington – Michael Lindblom died last weekend after Spokane police said he was “apparently unprovoked” shot dead by a suspect in North Spokane. He was 24 years old.
He leaves 4 siblings, including his twin brother Shawn.
“He’s helped people, but he was more than that. He had dreams and aspirations of his own,” said Shawn. “He was a huge nerd. He loved video games, music, art. That was probably one of the things we enjoyed together the most.”
His sister Jenney said she was like a second mother to Michael after her father died at the age of 2. She described Michael as a man who loved helping others.
“He went out for days or weeks and you heard from him and he said, ‘I’ll be home,'” Jenney said. “Then we would hear that he was helping someone else to do something.”
He also loved music and cooking, which his family said he bonded with.
“Our family comes from the south. So it’s just a super important thing, as is being able to connect with family while cooking, ”said Shawn. “Just like, it’s time we spent together.”
His love for cooking made him dream of one day becoming a chef with his own restaurant.
“He wanted to be a chef. That was his big dream,” said Kim Lindblom, his mother. “He wanted to own his own restaurant. We offered him to buy a … food truck and it was like no, he had to help people instead.”
Those dreams were dashed on December 11th when Michael died after being shot. Now his family shares their memories of the 24 years they had with Michael.
“I went out on the back porch and he had brought together three animals that were like cement animals. And they’ll stay there for a lifetime now, but he was just the greatest, ”Kim said. “I mean, little things like this just made him so happy.”
For twin brother Shawn, the loss is difficult to describe.
“I’ll just miss him. He was my twin brother, “said Shawn. “Very few people understand what this type of connection is. It’s like losing another part of yourself and never being able to get it back. “
A GoFundMe has been set up to help the family who live in the house where the shooting took place and the Lindblom family.