BOULDER, Colo. — A large memorial is growing outside the art and clothing store called Umba that Tralona Bartkowiak co-founded. She is being remembered by many as a shining light in the festival community in Boulder and beyond.
Tralona, or as people close to her called her, “Lona,” or "Lonna," was the owner of Umba Love, a clothing store she co-owned with her sister, Lisa Noble.
A resident of Louisville, Lona was widely known in the arts and music scene in Boulder and frequented places like The Boulder Theater and the Lazy Dog, the latter of which closed its doors in 2019.
A passion for travel and a thirst for enriching her life experience by learning about other cultures around the world led her to places like Nepal to celebrate the Holi Festival in 2016; Costa Rica in 2017; and most recently, the Burning Man Festival in Nevada, according to photos from her Facebook page.
Bartkowiak was among the 10 victims killed in a shooting at the King Soopers off Table Mesa Road in Boulder on Monday, March 22.
A co-worker who worked with Lona told Denver7 she went to the grocery store to get Benadryl for a person she cared about when the deadly shooting occurred at around 2:45 p.m.
Denver7 photojournalist James Dougherty said Lona used to rent a home from his next door neighbor and would visit because that neighbor still watched over her little dog, which was also the case on Monday.
Lona was supposed to come by her previous landlord’s home to pick up her dog late Monday night but never came.
On Tuesday, a small memorial had begun forming outside the Umba Love store in Boulder.
