Family wants beloved Cocoa leader remembered for who he was, not how he died
Family of victim speaks out after Cocoa murder
The victim was a former city council member in Cocoa.
COCOA, Fla . - Surrounded by her family, Lucinda Wallen spoke publicly for the first time since Friday when she returned home to find her husband, James, following what police are calling a fatal robbery incident.
The couple ould have celebrated their 72nd wedding anniversary Monday.
“You can accept a heart attack. An illness, you’d have time to adjust. But a murder is the last thing you’d expect -- to have someone you know and love murdered in cold blood on a Friday afternoon in their own home," she said.
The couple’s only granddaughter, Rainey, echoed that thought as she struggles with why her grandfather was the victim of such a random act of violence.
RELATED: Neighbors, colleagues remember James Wallen as 'teacher' and 'very good man'
“He was older. If he had died of a heart attack, it would have been sad, but we would not be doing an interview with you. It would have been a more acceptable way of dying,” Rainey said.
The 75-year-old’s family wanted those who didn’t know James Wallen to get a feel for who he was, so they invited a camera and a reporter into their living room of the home where he and his wife have resided since1972. The wall behind the couch where Lucinda Wallen, son Brett, daughter-in-law Michele and granddaughter Rainey sat was covered in family photos of various trips they all took together. They said it wasn’t material things that mattered most to James, rather, it was family and those adventures of traveling the globe.
“We were blessed. Traveled the world, been on every continent including Antarctica,” Lucinda said.
RELATED: Former Cocoa City Council member killed during break-in, police say
Wallen was a public school teacher in Brevard County for 37 years. He also served two terms on Cocoa’s City Commission and coached little league. In retirement, he volunteered at his church and delivered food for Meals on Wheels. His family said he had always said each new thing he experienced was “the best” and that he was always happy.
“He was the greatest dad you could ever have, and I can’t believe that he’s gone,” Brett said.
When asked what they would miss most about him, the family completed the answer together, saying, “Just being there, his presence, his laughter. He could make Rainey laugh like no other, silly, 'granddaddy' things.”
Plans for a memorial service for Wallen are still in the works. Lucinda said the pandemic is making it hard because there are so many people who loved James and want to say a proper goodbye.
