ATLANTA — Patrina Best, a woman with Georgia ties who was killed in Maryland over the weekend, is being remembered by her family as a beautiful soul who was a loving sister, daughter, aunt and dedicated nurse who stepped up to provide critical care during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Best's family said in a statement she was "the light of our lives" and a "wonderful person in every regard."
She died over the weekend in Prince George's County, Maryland, in a case where police say her boyfriend, Spalding County High School football coach Carl Kearney, confessed to killing her.
Her family told 11Alive's sister station WUSA in Washington, D.C. that Kearney was helping her move personal items from the Atlanta area to her parents' home in the D.C. area as she was preparing to take on a new travel nurse assignment. The parents were out of town visiting grandchildren.
The family statement described Best as best friends with her older sister Gianina who traveled the world as part of a Navy family before graduating from high school in Georgia and, later, Georgia Southern University.
Her parents are Pearson and Georgiana Best.
Remembering Patrina Best
The statement said she received her nursing degree from GSU and trained in operating room nursing. It added she was "dedicated to her patients and loved being part of a team in the O.R."
"During the COVID-19 pandemic, she traveled the country providing nursing care to areas in need of qualified O.R. nurses and touched countless lives at every stop," Best's family said.
Best was described as someone who was always near the beach as a child -- her parents being from Barbados and Hawaii -- and an avid swimmer who competed in high school and then for the Eagles at Georgia Southern.
"Patrina was a fun-loving, warm-hearted person and made friends easily everywhere she went," the family statement said. "The outpouring of love and support from her friends and colleagues is a testament to the amazing person she was."
She is survived by her parents, sister and brother-in-law and their two children, whom the statement said "consider her the greatest 'Tita' in the entire world."
"She also leaves behind her beloved dog, Luke, who traveled with her to every location she worked as a travel nurse. Patrina was a constant source of joy and laughter in our lives. She was guaranteed to be present for every birthday, holiday, and special occasion. She was also deeply compassionate and caring," the family statement said. "A few years ago, she put her career on pause for several months to care for her ailing grandmother after she suffered a stroke. She was a wonderful person in every regard. She was the light of our lives, and we will miss her dearly for the rest of our days."
Best's family added: "It is with great sadness that we acknowledge her tragic death, but we are thankful for the positive impact she had on the world during her life."
Kearney is due in court in Maryland on Tuesday afternoon. He faces first- and second-degree murder charges after police said he walked into a station Saturday morning and confessed to killing Best.
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