Family Seeks Help To Honor Slain Mother With Final Loving Tribute

Loved ones remember Sonoma County mother for compassion, community service, adventurous spirit, and unwavering love for wildlife.

By Angela Woodall, Patch Staff

Jul 9, 2026 2:12 pm PDT

Family members remember Joni Brown as a devoted mother, wildfire volunteer, and nature lover while raising funds to give her a lasting memorial. (GoFundMe)

SONOMA COUNTY, CA — The family of a Santa Rosa mother killed in the city's first homicide of 2026 is remembering her as an adventurous woman whose generosity touched neighbors, wildfire survivors, animals, and everyone she met.

Joni Brown, 40, was fatally shot June 8. She leaves behind two children, a daughter and a son.

Brown's sister described her as someone who embraced adventure, loved the outdoors, adored her pit bulls, and never passed up an opportunity to help someone in need.

"Joni was always ready to lend a hand," her sister, Nancy Brown, wrote on a GoFundMe page.

Brown volunteered during Sonoma County's devastating 2017 wildfires. Her family also said she had an unusual passion for rescuing bumblebees, reflecting the compassion that defined her life.

"Our family is heartbroken by her sudden loss," Nancy Brown wrote. "Joni's kindness, courage, and love for the outdoors will always be remembered by those who knew her."

The family is raising money to cover the remaining costs of Brown's burial and to purchase a headstone where her children, relatives, and friends can honor her memory.

According Brown, donations will help provide the lasting tribute Joni Brown's loved ones hope to create while easing the financial burden left by her unexpected death.

Joni Brown had been standing near the northwest driveway of a retail shopping center at about 9 p.m. in Santa Rosa on June 8, when a man wearing dark clothing and a face mask approached on foot and shot her multiple times, police said.

Bystanders and a Santa Rosa police officer gave Brown CPR until paramedics arrived. She was pronounced dead a short time later.

Santa Rosa police arrested two Clearlake people in the shooting. Dwight Kestler, 56, of Clearlake, was charged on suspicion of murder. Jill Bynum, 57, of Clearlake was arrested on unrelated warrants and suspicion of being an accessory after the fact.