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Tamera Mowry's niece was one of the victims of the United States' most recent mass shooting.
By Alison Cerri — Written on Nov 08, 2018
Late Wednesday night, a mass shooting left twelve dead at the Borderline Bar & Grill in Thousand Oaks, California. The gunman has been identified by police as Ian David Long, an ex-Marine, who was also found dead. For much of Thursday, the only confirmed victim was Ventura County Sheriff’s Sgt Ron Helus, who was responding to the call.
On social media, however, friends and family of people who went to the bar — many of whom were college students, as it was the bar’s “college night” — made posts following reports begging for information about loved ones they haven’t heard from yet.
TMZ reported about one such tweet that came from Twitter user Ashley @amowreader, who posted pictures of her missing suitemate Alaina Housley.
One of the first responses to Ashley’s tweet came from Tamera Mowry Housley from Sister Sister. Tamera is Alaina’s aunt. She and Ashley tweeted back and forth in a heartbreaking thread trying to figure out where Alaina might be.
Adam Housley, Alaina's uncle and Tamera's husband, told the L.A. Times, "My gut is telling me she's inside the bar, dead. I'm hoping I'm wrong." The L.A. Times reported that Alaina's iPhone and Apple Watch showed her location at the bar.
On the afternoon after the shooting, Tamera and Adam confirmed their Alaina was killed in the massacre. Here's what we know about the young woman who lost her life in the violence.
1. She was a first-year student at Pepperdine University
Alaina wass active on Instagram. Her last post was on Halloween, a week before the shooting. Her account description states she is in the Pepperdine University class of 2022.
2. She loved musical theatre
Her account description also includes a lyric from “She Used To Be Mine,” a song from the musical Waitress. She thanked acting troupe Team Starkid for their original production The Guy Who Didn’t Like Musicals in one of her most recent posts.
3. She played soccer for 14 years
Nearly one year ago, Alaina posted pictures with her team. She said she couldn’t complain after winning first in their league for the second year in a row, but she was very sad to be ending her soccer career.
4. She turned 18 a few months ago
On July 28, Alaina made a post including a picture of her holding big, silver 1 and 8 balloons. Her birthday celebrations included ice cream, a musical production of The Hunchback of Notre Dame, and a small booklet called “Alaina’s Guide to College! Well, Freshmen year at least!”
5. She was very close to her cousins
Alaina’s Instagram is filled with pictures including Tamera’s children, Aden and Ariah. Tamera commented on one from January, “Love my gals!”
Tamera and Adam said in a statement, "Alaina was an incredible young woman with so much life ahead of her and we are devastated that her life was cut short in this manner. We thank everyone for your prayers and ask for privacy at this time."
Alison Cerri is an editorial intern at YourTango. When she's not writing, she can be found on a run or at rugby practice. Follow her on Instagram.