CLEVELAND — Police are searching for suspects after a woman was shot and killed while walking her dog Thursday evening.
Police say 58-year-old Sheila Wallace was shot in the head while walking her dog in the 12300 block of McGowan Park around 7 p.m.
A passerby found the victim while walking in the area. She was unresponsive when officers arrived and was later pronounced dead at the scene.
The victim's small dog was found unharmed nearby.
Wallace worked for 11 years as an administrative assistant for the Cleveland Clinic's Heart and Vascular Institute.
“We are deeply saddened by the tragic loss of our caregiver. Our thoughts are with her family, friends and colleagues at this time," the Cleveland Clinic said in a statement issued Friday.
Sheila Wallace leaves behind two grown children and grandchildren, as well as a close-knit group of musical friends.
For 40 years, Wallace had been a part of the Canton-based “Bluecoats.” The elite marching group is made up of young men and women in their mid-teens through early-20’s who audition to join.
Nancy Johnson first met Sheila in the early 1980’s when Sheila was her instructor.
She described her as a “second mother” with “inner strength” who taught others to believe they could do anything.
“She was a beautiful soul who loved dearly,” Johnson said, adding that Wallace was “very religious.”
Melanie Ross met her around the same time and described her as a “strong role model.”
“A mom away from home,” she said, “who had a laugh beyond belief.”
We reached out to Park Heights Baptist Church, where Sheila regularly attended. According to Pastor Ryan Colpitts, Sheila was 'an extremely kind and encouraging woman.'
"She was always the first person to offer you a kind word and a smile, or if you were feeling down on yourself there would be Sheila encouraging you, always building up, never tearing down," Pastor Colpitts wrote in an email. "That is how she has been throughout my time knowing her, from the beginning, up until just this past Sunday when she smiled at me, gave me a big hug, and said more encouraging words."
On Friday, Sheila Wallace's daughter asked for privacy.
Police have not yet identified a suspect or a motive. They say there were no witnesses. Anyone with information on the crime should call police at 216-623-5464.