She forgave her daughter’s killer as she worked to protect victims. Diana Ross dies at 69.

Diana Ross, who became an advocate for domestic violence victims after her daughter was shot and killed by the son of a late Kentucky governor, died Sunday. She was 69.

Ross had been diagnosed earlier this year with leukemia, said longtime friend Dale Emmons of Richmond.

“It came much quicker than any of us thought it was going to come,” Emmons said. “She was very accepting of her fate. She was ready to go. She point-blank said that to me.

Fayette County Sheriff Kathy Witt said victims of domestic violence would often cite Ross as the reason they sought help. Ross had appeared in a television commercial about domestic violence.

“They would say, ‘It’s because of that woman — they oftentimes would forget her name — but they would say ‘It’s because of that woman that gave me the strength to come forward,’” Witt said. “Or they would say, ‘It’s because of Amanda’s mother that gave me the courage to come forward.’”

Ross was initially a reluctant advocate for victims, Emmons said. “It’s not something she had any burning passion to do. It got thrust on her with life’s circumstance.”

But she grew more comfortable with the role of speaking out, and people responded to her. Ross once told Emmons that people would stop her in the grocery store to tell their stories about domestic violence and to thank her for her advocacy.

“She had a sales clerk at Kroger in tears who stopped her and told her ‘I want you to know how much I appreciate what you’ve done. You helped me go get help,’” Emmons said.

On the morning of Sept. 11, 2009, former state Rep. Steve Nunn shot and killed Ross’s daughter, 29-year-old Amanda Ross, who was his ex-girlfriend, in the parking lot outside the Opera House Square in downtown Lexington. Nunn is the son of the late Gov. Louie Nunn.

Amanda Ross had sought a protective order against Nunn for domestic violence in February 2009. He continued stalking her for months before murdering her.

The shooting garnered national headlines and sparked a cry for more legislation to prevent domestic violence.

At Diana Ross’s urging, state lawmakers approved a measure called Amanda’s Law that allowed judges to expand the use of global positioning tracking systems to alert victims when their past attackers get too close.

The effort to get the law passed elevated the issue of domestic violence and its effects on families, Emmons said.

In an interview with the Herald-Leader earlier this year, Diana Ross said she believed her daughter would still be alive if Nunn had been tracked electronically. Amanda Ross would never have left her apartment that morning to go to work if she had been warned Nunn was in the area, her mother said.

Nearly two years after Amanda Ross died, Nunn pleaded guilty to intentional murder with an aggravating circumstance. Judge Pamela Goodwine sentenced Nunn to life in prison without the possibility of parole.

Emmons said Ross “didn’t let hate and spite dictate how she handled herself” after her daughter’s death. In a victim’s impact statement submitted to Fayette Circuit Court, Diana Ross said she forgave Nunn.

“My faith compels me to forgive Steve Nunn,” Diana Ross wrote. “Refusal to do so would only harm me.”

She added: “My forgiveness does not excuse Steve Nunn from accountability to the laws of man or God’s law. The ultimate judgment of Steve Nunn for the murder of Amanda is not in my hands or the hands of this court. It is in God’s hands.”

Born in Fleming County, Ross was the daughter of Cecil and Virginia Legg McIntyre, who operated a country store in the Hilltop community.

She had a successful hair design business in Flemingsburg before moving to Lexington.

Ross was preceded in death by her husband, Terrell. He died in 2006.

Survivors include a daughter, sister and brother.

The time and date for a graveside service at Lexington Cemetery had not been scheduled as of early Monday. Care Cremation and Funeral Service of Lexington is handling arrangements.

In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to Greenhouse 17, a domestic violence shelter and advocacy organization in Lexington. For information, go to greenhouse17.org.

This story was originally published November 26, 2018 at 11:07 AM.