After five days of grieving, the D’Amato family gathered in a hotel just off the Washington State University campus in Pullman, Washington. It was a time of sorrow, but also a time to share the stories and memories of Angelina D’Amato, a beloved daughter and sister.
“The world is so dark at times and we can have that person who, no matter what is going on, can kind of spark that little joy and happiness,” said Angelina’s mother, Christina D’Amato. “It’s, you know, something special.”
Angelina D’Amato was a bright light, especially for those who did not know they were in the dark.
That light was lost on Jan. 30 when news broke that Angelina D’Amato died in a car accident, just five days after her 22nd birthday. D’Amato was preparing to walk at the WSU graduation ceremony in May.
D’Amato’s boyfriend, 20-year-old WSU student Vincent Long, was driving them west on Albion Road when they entered the intersection with U.S. Highway 195 and collided with a semitruck, which sent the vehicle into a field where tracks from the car’s tires can still be seen in the mud, days after the accident.
D’Amato died at the scene while Long was airlifted to Providence Sacred Heart Medical Hospital in Spokane in critical condition, but his condition has since improved. Washington State Patrol listed the cause of the accident as failure to yield.
With the memories and the desire to tell her story comes difficult conversations for her family regarding Angelina’s death. Those conversations within the family sparked a sense of urgency to call for change and to raise awareness about the dangers that took a daughter away from her family.
“How many more does there need to be to finally make that change?” Angelina’s oldest sister, Amanda Beltran, asked. “We, as a family, are going to work towards making that change, because Angelina didn’t deserve to go out like that. No one deserves to go out like that.”
The D’Amato family suggested a variety of potential changes to make the intersection and highway safer. The family suggested new signage that could warn drivers, sensors, re-angling the road, a reduced speed limit, whatever it would take to prevent a tragic accident like Angelina’s from happening again.
According to the Washington Traffic Safety Commission, 21 fatal crashes occurred on Highway 195 from 2015 to 2024. Six of those crashes were within 15 miles of Pullman.
Over 26% of fatal crashes in Whitman County involved a young driver (ages 15-24), according to the Commission.
Christina D’Amato said it is important to consider how to make the roads safer for students and their parents, but also for the WSU community.
“This is a small community,” Angelina’s mother said. “When you start losing one or two members, that’s a lot.”
The D’Amato family had seen this before. When Beltran was attending WSU, she drove through Othello, Washington, after Thanksgiving and was broadsided by a drunk driver.
With that in mind, along with the other accidents that have happened on Highway 195, Angelina’s father, Jonathan D’Amato, feels a sense of urgency.
“We need to sit down and start putting our heads together and figuring this out and make this happen,” he said. “It’s not a 20-year thing, not a 10-year thing. Not a, ‘Oh we got to study the area for two years.’ No, it needs to happen now.”
As the D’Amato family has begun to formulate how to honor Angelina and prevent further tragedy, their priority is still to tell the story of a young woman who was in love, had unmatched confidence and deeply cared for those around her.
D’Amato and Long met online in high school during COVID-19, and their friendship grew as they ate lunch together and with Angelina D’Amato’s younger sisters, Sophia and Olivia. The pair started dating when they got to WSU. D’Amato’s mother said her daughter turned a best friend into a boyfriend and described their relationship as “two orbs that rotated around each other, but never too far from each other.”
D’Amato’s father shared her sentiment.
“The passion that he had for her and the kind, caring way he treated my daughter and the passion that you would see Angelina have for him and the way she would take care of him,” Jonathan D’Amato said. “They were like the old married couple, the fairy tale, it really was.”
D’Amato and Long were both accounting majors. D’Amato was pursuing her CPA and planning to study abroad in China with Long after graduation.
Her story does not come without her sisters. Despite a 10-year age gap between Amanda and Angelina, the friendly arguing and the support they gave each other kept them close, something Beltran deeply cherishes and misses about her “little curlicue.”
“I think the funniest thing is just her and I would always go at it because she thought she knew everything,” Beltran said. “And at the end of the day, she did know everything. For me, being the older one, I’m like, ‘Great, here’s my 10-year-old sister telling me what’s going on in the world.’”
Beltran said she misses how her sister would sing songs with confidence regardless of how well she knew the lyrics. Beltran even said she probably will never have a chocolate chip cookie better than Angelina’s.
Olivia and Sophia said they thought Angelina would want to be remembered for her spirit, her confidence and her heart. Beltran added there was not just one thing Angelina can be remembered for.
D’Amato had big aspirations. She also loved the simple things in life. She was a big Disney, Marvel and BTS fan. She appreciated art, flowers, dancing, singing and dressing up. She loved Mexican Coke and steak.
It was these simple, yet powerful interests that brought joy to her life, a joy she exemplified and that her mother hopes others embrace.
“Live like Angelina. Dance in the rain,” Christina D’Amato said. “Be bold. Shake the hands. Be kind to the people. And smile.”
To support the D’Amato family in funeral costs and recovery, visit their GoFundMe. Over $12,000 has been raised so far.
