Unsolved murder: Family keeps son’s memory alive by helping others

CHARLOTTE — The parents of a Charlotte man who was shot and killed four years ago is turning their loss into helping those in need.

Sam Stitt, 23, was killed on Aug. 8, 2019, at the Somerset Apartments on Ventura Way Drive in north Charlotte.

Stitt was a student at East Carolina University looking for a career in the military before someone took his life.

No one has been held responsible for the deadly shooting, which would make it easy for loved ones to become frustrated and bitter.

However, family members are setting an example of grace through grief.

Stitt’s father, Michael Smith, developed a love of riding motorcycles when he turned 55.

He will use that love to honor his late son by holding a charity ride.

“Sam is the coolest individual I’ve ever met in my life,” Michael Smith said. “Sam was just very laid back.”

Stitt was picking up his then 18-month-old son the night he was killed.

“Sam went to work and went to pick his son up and that’s what he did,” the father said.

Police made an arrest in the case, but the charges were ultimately dropped because of a lack of evidence and the case is still unsolved.

“If they make an arrest, sentence someone, whatever it is that the court system does, it’s not going to bring my son back,” Michael Smith said.

They are raising money for a scholarship at Johnson C. Smith University in their son’s honor.

The money goes to one student each year majoring in social work to hopefully bring that graduate back into the community.

“It helps me to be able to help others,” said Stitt’s mother, Sylvia Smith. “People need to see a good outcome. They need to see that it’s OK to be happy. They need to see it’s OK to grieve and still smile and enjoy life.”

Stitt’s father has made it his mission to keep the legacy alive.

“It’s important to me for the public to know not every young African American male that’s a victim of gun violence is living a questionable lifestyle,” Michael Smith said. “Sam was living a very honorable, law-abiding life.”

“He did leave us a grandson, Noah, who’s five now, near and dear to us, so I think he’d be very happy about the way we are engaging with Noah and just helping to raise Noah,” Sylvia Smith said.

The charity ride will start at 9:45 a.m. Saturday at Camp Green Park and will end at Independence Harley-Davidson.

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