SEATTLE — A family is asking for help bringing their brother, father and friend home.
Nahashon Kamau Wanyoike’s body was found in Green Lake last week, after his family said he had been missing for around two weeks.
The investigation into his death is still underway, as his family awaits an autopsy report. KIRO 7 reached out to Seattle police for details, and is still waiting for a response.
Loved ones of Wanyoike, known to many as “Kamaa,” are now raising money to bring his body home to Kenya.
“He was very loved,” said Malika Simon, Kamaa’s sister.
“He was honestly one of the funniest people I ever met,” said Mary Ndugo, his sister-in-law.
Friends described him as “generous” and a “hard worker,” who worked with people with disabilities.
“Always reaching out to other people,” said Peter Kithene, a family friend. “Taking care of people.”
Loved ones describe a painstaking two weeks searching for him, before they were notified his body was found in Green Lake.
They still have more questions than answers, but are concerned mental health might have played a part.
“He was another beautiful human being whose life has just been taken away in circumstances that we still are struggling to understand,” Kithene said.
Simon said she hopes others struggling, especially men, consider speaking more openly about what they’re going through.
“As a family, we were there for him,” she said. “We wanted to help him, but we didn’t know. We didn’t know what he was going through.”
The family is raising money to bring his body back to Kenya as he would have wanted.
“It’s really where he wanted to be,” Ndugo said. “[As] immigrants, this is not our home, so I know he really wanted to be home.”
They’re grateful for the support they have already received.
“Above all, we’re just grateful for the time we were able to have with him,” Ndugo said. “And thank you to everyone for the continued support. We’re grateful.”
You can donate to support the family on their GoFundMe here.
If you or a loved one is struggling, help is available 24/7. You can call or text 988 to be put in contact with a crisis counselor.