SUN CITY, Ariz. — A Valley woman killed in an incredibly rare animal attack is being remembered as a bright light in her community.
Gail Mattson, 79, died after an elephant charged her cart on an African safari vacation in Zambia.
"You'll see Gail a mile away because she always dressed flamboyantly," John Longabaugh said.
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Friends of Mattson said she stood out in their Sun City community for wearing colorful clothing and having a vivid personality.
“There’s a real void because Gail would brighten a room when she’d walk in," Brenda Biggs said.
Mattson was a snow bird who split her time between Arizona and Minnesota.
Between bridge club, the golf course and her church, friends said Mattson was always doing something.
“She always was fun to be around," Longabaugh said. "She really was.”
Before Mattson left on an African safari vacation, she told her friends she was going on the "trip of a lifetime."
VERSIÓN EN ESPAÑOL: Un elefante mata a una turista de Arizona durante sus 'vacaciones de ensueño'
“Specifically, that this was one of her last bucket list trips," Longabaugh said.
Tragically, it was Mattson's last trip.
Wilderness, the tour company, said an "aggressive" elephant charged at the safari cart carrying six tourists and a guide in the Kafue National Park on Saturday.
“The very first thing was shock because I mean this is a vibrant woman who had all things going for her. I know she was almost 80 but she was really healthy and she was doing things, always busy. To think of her being dead," Longabaugh said.
Friends told 12News Sun City will be gloomier without Mattson, but her memory will continue to live on.
“The most optimistic, positive person you could ever meet," Longabaugh said.
Mattson's church told 12News a memorial service will be planned.
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