Renee Good's Wife Remembers Her as a Christian Who Believed 'We Are Here to Love Each Other': 'She Literally Sparkled' By Greta Bjornson 11

Two days after Renee Nicole Good was shot and killed by an ICE agent in Minneapolis, her wife spoke out about the tragic incident, remembering the 37-year-old mother for her legacy of “kindness and love.”

Becca Good shared a lengthy statement with Minnesota Public Radio on Friday, Jan. 9, that began by thanking the people who reached out to her and her family not just from the United States, but all over the world.

“This kindness of strangers is the most fitting tribute because if you ever encountered my wife, Renee Nicole Macklin Good, you know that above all else, she was kind. In fact, kindness radiated out of her,” Becca wrote.

Becca said her wife “literally sparkled,” writing, “she didn’t wear glitter but I swear she had sparkles coming out of her pores. All the time. You might think it was just my love talking but her family said the same thing. Renee was made of sunshine.”

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Renee lived by the belief that “there is kindness in the world and we need to do everything we can to find it where it resides and nurture it where it needs to grow,” Becca wrote, pointing to her late wife’s Christian beliefs, which she said taught the “truth” that “we are here to love each other, care for each other, and keep each other safe and whole.”

The couple sought a “better life for ourselves,” and had chosen Minnesota to make their new home, Becca wrote. She said they soon felt welcomed by the Minneapolis community, where they felt a “strong shared sense … that we were looking out for each other.” 

Becca added, “Here, I had finally found peace and safe harbor. That has been taken from me forever.”

Becca said that she and Renee had been raising their 6-year-old son “to believe that no matter where you come from or what you look like, all of us deserve compassion and kindness.”

The boy has already lost his father, Becca noted. The Minnesota Star Tribune reported that Renee was previously married to Timmy Ray Macklin Jr., the father of Renee’s youngest son, who died at age 36 in 2023.

Renee was also a mother to two older children, a daughter and a son from her first marriage, who are 12 and 15 years old, according to The Associated Press.

Becca said in her statement to MPR that she will now raise Renee’s 6-year-old and “continue teaching him, as Renee believed, that there are people building a better world for him. That the people who did this had fear and anger in their hearts, and we need to show them a better way.”

Renee had been driving back home from school drop-off with Becca on Wednesday when they came upon a group of ICE agents, her ex-husband told AP. In her new statement, Becca said “we stopped to support our neighbors.”

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Before Renee was shot and killed, video showed Becca filming as ICE agents approached the Honda Pilot, with Renee in the driver’s seat.

After Renee was shot, Becca was seen chasing the car as it crashed into other cars down the street, then falling to the ground, crying.

“They shot my wife,” she could be heard saying, and later added, “I made her come down here, it’s my fault,” The National News Desk reported.

When asked by a bystander if there was anybody they could call for her, Becca replied, “I have a 6-year-old at school… we’re new here, we don’t have anyone.”

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After Renee’s death, DHS spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin alleged in a statement that the ICE agent who shot Renee was “fearing for his life, the lives of his fellow law enforcement and the safety of the public.” The agent has since been identified as Jonathan Ross.

Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem claimed Renee had been “stalking and impeding” ICE agents on Wednesday, and accused her of “domestic terrorism.”

Renee’s mother, Donna Ganger, spoke to The Minnesota Star Tribune after her daughter’s death, and called DHS’ “domestic terrorist” description and its claim that ICE acted in self defense “so stupid.”

“She was probably terrified,” Ganger said, adding that her daughter was “not part of anything like that at all,” in reference to protesters who have been challenging ICE agents.