Alice Stilwell’s family has shared a moving obituary honoring the 67-year-old grandmother and hair stylist after she and her longtime partner were killed by teenagers in a stolen luxury SUV.
Stilwell and Robert Barr, Jr., 54, died Saturday morning in Mays Landing, Atlantic County, when a stolen $220,000 Mercedes-Benz G-Wagon crashed into their Hyundai around 7:50 a.m. The couple, who had been together for more than two decades, were both from Egg Harbor.
Stilwell began her career as a hair stylist in the early 1990s after deciding to “pursue her passion for creativity and beauty,” her family wrote in her obituary. But for the mother and grandmother of 10, the work went far beyond a paycheck. “The chair became a place where people could feel heard, understood, encouraged, and loved. She was a stylist, but she was also a counselor, a therapist, a trusted friend, and to so many of her clients, a source of comfort,” the obituary states.
She had recently cut back her hours as she entered retirement with Barr, though she never fully stepped away. “She loved her clients far too much. Helping people feel beautiful, confident, and cared for was simply part of who she was,” her family wrote.
In her later years, Stilwell turned her creative energy toward artwork and “whimsical creations,” which she sold at local farmers markets.
The teenagers were speeding down the wrong side of the road when they struck the couple’s sedan and sent it careening into a nearby gas station near Route 50 and Third Street, according to the Atlantic County Prosecutor’s Office. The teens emerged from the wreck largely unhurt and tried to run, but were quickly arrested.
Local police had been tracking the stolen 2024 G-Wagon, which carried Pennsylvania plates, since approximately 3:40 a.m. After it blew past an officer in Longport who attempted a traffic stop, according to the criminal complaint. The luxury vehicle was spotted again around 7:45 a.m. In Hamilton Township. Police gave chase but lost sight of it minutes before the fatal collision.
Nayshaun Brown, 18, of Atlantic City, and three unidentified juvenile teens face charges of conspiracy to commit aggravated assault, joyriding, and eluding police.
In the viral moment that brought national attention to the case, the stark contrast between the alleged recklessness of the young suspects and the lives they destroyed has fueled outrage online. The teens survived with minimal injuries while a grandmother preparing for a peaceful retirement and her partner of two decades were killed.
Stilwell’s family framed her legacy in their farewell. “The unexpected circumstances surrounding Alice’s passing have left an immeasurable hole in the lives of those who loved her, yet her legacy will not end with her passing,” the obituary reads. “It will live on in her daughters, her grandchildren, family, friends, the people Alice made feel beautiful, the people she comforted, the people she encouraged, and in every creative piece made by hands and hearts that she inspired.”
Brown and the three juveniles remain in custody as the Atlantic County Prosecutor’s Office continues its investigation.