NORFOLK, Va. — Several people in the Hampton Roads community are mourning the loss of 43-year-old Shelby Riddick-Walker, better known as Lexus "Lex" Walker, an advocate for the LGBTQ+ community.
Early Saturday morning, Virginia State Police said Walker was involved in a head-on collision with a suspected drunk driver in the Downtown Tunnel. Authorities said she died on impact.
Several of Walker's friends said her legacy will always live on.
"She was a mentor and a role model, and she just wasn't the average person," said Brendan Mulligan, 37th and Zen General Manager and a friend of Walker.
Friends of Walker said she was employed at 37th and Zen, where she often hosted or performed on stage. On Sunday, many were still shocked by her sudden death.
"She had just worked on Friday night. She had just left here. She was on her way home from here. When the accident happened," said Mulligan.
State Police reported the collision happened at around 3:15 a.m. Authorities said Dominique Goodwin, 27, of Chesapeake, was traveling east in her Volkswagen Tiguan in the westbound lanes, leading her to crash into Walker's Chevrolet Equinox.
"To get the call, to see the photos, and I was at my full-time job, broke me down," said friend and fellow performer Albert Jackson.
Friends said Riddick was a big advocate for those in the LGBTQ+ community.
"She [was] also a mentor, especially in the trans community. She has her kids that have been out for years or just came out last week whose families may not be there for them, and she was the family," said Mulligan.
While many of Walker's friends are devastated by her death, they say her legacy will live on.
"I'm sad that my sister is gone, but her legacy lives on within all of us," said Jackson.
A tribute to Walker posted on 37th and Zen’s Facebook page reads: “You were one of a kind. Full of life, spirit, love, [and] humor… Most of all you were a friend, a caregiver, a mother to so many…”
A spokesperson for the LGBT Life Center confirmed on social media, Walker is a former employee. The statement described Walker as authentic and hard-working and said: “She was fully committed to this community and served in so many ways.”
Authorities said charges are pending against Goodwin. The investigation is ongoing.