TUKWILA, Wash. — A local artist is asking for the public’s help after a thief stole her work and her father’s ashes from a car in Tukwila.
She told KIRO 7 she is out thousands of dollars after the theft, but her biggest priority is getting her father’s remains back.
“It was devastating,” Georgia Bean said. “I cried instantaneously.”
Bean said Monday that she was fresh off a weekend art show with another coming up later in the week. A friend’s truck was loaded up with her paintings, prints and a box.
Inside the box was some cash, her business ledgers and a small vial of her father’s cremated remains.
She told KIRO 7 the truck was unsupervised for a few minutes. In that time, someone unlocked the doors, took several paintings, all her prints and the box.
“At first, we didn’t realize the paintings were gone too,” Bean said. “We thought it was just the cash box. So I am mourning my dad twice in a row. He died, and now he has been taken from me.”
Bean’s father died three years ago. She’s kept the vial in her cash box ever since, and jokingly called it her “travel dad.” She found comfort knowing he was with her every time she showed off her work.
“I didn’t want him to miss a show,” she said. “He was my number one cheerleader.”
She now believes her art may be the most important lead in getting him back. She believes whoever has her paintings also has her father’s remains.
“It’s signed at the bottom. The only thing I can think of is to keep for themselves if they liked it or try to sell it themselves,” Bean said. “If they do, I hope the community can help me recognize them and get them back to me or report whoever has them.”
Tukwila police are investigating.
Bean started a GoFundMe to help her deal with the financial impacts of the theft. You can donate here. that
©2026 Cox Media Group
