Tri-Cities ‘Walmart Lady’ remembered as kind, strong after dying from coronavirus

For decades she was known as the “Walmart Lady.”

Anita “Anna” M. Wynalda worked 25 years for the retailer. The Kennewick woman knew customers by name and they grew to care for her.

“(W)ithout fail, she would always ask me how my mom was doing and passed along her love,” one customer posted online. “She always greeted my daughter, Ashlee, by name and was always quick to give us hugs!”

It was one of many kind comments posted on a GoFundMe account created by one of her granddaughters before Wynalda died Tuesday at a Portland hospital of COVID-19.

She was hospitalized for 23 days, at first in Kennewick and then Portland, her Pasco granddaughter Dominique Martinez posted.

Wynalda was admitted to Trios Southridge Hospital in mid-April but it wasn’t until six days later that she tested positive for the coronavirus that causes the respiratory illness, COVID-19, said the post.

She turned 66 while in the hospital.

She was later flown to Legacy Emanuel Medical Center in Portland. While on a ventilator and in a coma, her family held onto their faith — and to each other.

“Though she held in there for 23 days, God knew she was tired and hurting. Our hearts are broken but she is no longer in pain,” said a post on May 12.

Move to Mid-Columbia

Wynalda and her six siblings moved to Grandview from Texas as a child with her family.

As an adult, family remained everything to her.

She raised two daughters as a single mom, and worked long hours and multiple jobs to ensure they had enough.

“All the neighborhood kids always came to Miss Wynalda’s house for food or even just someone to talk to,” wrote Martinez.

As her two daughters grew, Wynalda volunteered to work graveyard shift so she could take her grandchildren to school and help as much as she could during the day.

She also become a foster parent, and many she cared for remained close to her.

“She was small but mighty,” wrote her daughter Patty Martinez on Facebook. “I loved her smile she had and how she was only 4 foot 8 inches tall but when she walked into a room she felt 10 feet tall.”

Her daughters were at her side in her final moments, along with her 12 grandchildren via a Zoom.

“She will always remain beautiful, kind and strong,” wrote her granddaughter on the GoFundMe page.

To donate toward the medical costs: bit.ly/wynalda

This story was originally published May 13, 2020 at 4:52 PM.