Gun Violence 249
Satario Natividad, 24, cooked up rhymes as Chef Staxx
Satario Natividad worked two jobs, one doing demolition work and another at McDonald’s, but his goal was to make it as a successful rap artist. His stage name was Chef Staxx—he’d say he’s in the kitchen cooking up rhymes—and his mother Cynthia Jacobs recalls one epic performance. He had been locked up, and during that […]
Nasir Sadat, 36, lived by the motto ‘respect the push’
High school football star. Peacemaker. Protector. Nasir Iman Robertson Sadat was all of this and more, but above all else he was a family man. He was devoted not only to his wife and three daughters, but also to his extended family. “When we had family events for New Year’s, for Christmas, for Thanksgiving, for […]
William Lyons, 24: His unborn daughter is due on his birthday
Mirna Santiago and William Lyons met in 2013 when they were both ordering food at McDonald’s. “He bought my food for me, we exchanged numbers and from there we started talking,” Mirna said. Their first date was at Applebee’s. A few months into their relationship, Mirna found out that Will hadn’t been completely upfront about […]
Marcos Malave, 32: “He was a very helpful and kindhearted person”
The above image, Marcos Malave, was created by artist Guy Kiernan as part of the 2021-2022 Souls Shot Portrait Project exhibition. _____________________________________________________________________________ Nearly every morning, Marcos Malave would make the 10-minute walk to the house that his mother and sister shared in North Philadelphia so they could have breakfast together on the porch. “Coffee, toast […]
Na’Jay Williams-White, 18, an aspiring rapper who loved sweet potato pie
Na’Jay Williams-White loved sweet potato pie with a graham cracker crust. “On Thanksgiving he’d take a whole pie and eat it with a spoon,” his mother Sharee Booker said. “He wouldn’t share it.” Na’Jay was shot and killed Nov. 5, 2018, but that didn’t stop Sharee from making sure his favorite pie was part of […]
Jahree Pray, 19: ‘He was the one who tied us all together’
When Lisa Hall talks about her grandson Jahree Robert Pray, she uses a special term of endearment. “He’s my little infant,” she said. “Even when he was big, he always wanted to lay on me, and I would say, ‘That’s my little infant,’ and he would say, ‘I’m grown,’ and I would say, ‘You’re still […]
John Heggie, 30, ‘angelic spirit’ working two jobs
The above image, John Heggie, was created by artist Celeste Schor as part of the 2020-2021 Souls Shot Portrait Project exhibition. ___________________________________________________________________________ When John Heggie III went with Teresa Prescott to a Senegalese restaurant in West Philadelphia, he had no idea what he was in for. It was his first time eating African cuisine, so […]
Shawn Rankins, 28: “My son had a loving heart”
His family and the Philadelphia Eagles were what Shawn Rankins loved the most, his mother Shawna said. “Shawn’s main goal was to take care of me and my mom and to show his siblings a different path than what he took,” she said. He had made mistakes in the past. Starting in his teenage years, […]
Tyler Mulligan, 17, dreamed of traveling the world
When John Mulligan was the chief of the LaMott Fire Department in Cheltenham, he stopped into the fire house with his three sons, Xavier, Donovan and Tyler to sign paperwork on his day off. Tyler was acting up, so John sent him to stand in the corner. A fire alarm pull station was within reach, […]
Najee Jones, 25, tradesman who attended college on a football scholarship
Najee Jones excelled at football. Wearing his #71 jersey, he was a standout defensive and offensive lineman for Imhotep Charter High School’s team, and his stats landed him a college scholarship. At Thaddeus Stevens College of Technology in Lancaster, he majored in plumbing technology — his father was in the same field — and went […]
Tyree Shaw, 20: ‘There are still a lot of questions that we have’
The above image, Tyree Shaw, was created by artist Juliette Watts as part of the 2021-2022 Souls Shot Portrait Project exhibition. _____________________________________________________________________________ Born eight years apart, Latasha Shaw and her little brother Tyree had a close relationship. When they were growing up in Germantown, she took him with her wherever she went, including to the […]
Najir Peterson, 20: ‘Mom, you pushed me, and I did it, and this paper is for you’
The proudest moment of Najir Imir Nathan Peterson’s life was when he graduated from Camelot Academy in 2017. He overcame a lot to get to that point. Najir was sick as a child and suffered from seizures. At school, he had learning differences and a speech impairment, which led to him being bullied. Najir went […]
Jovanni Oyola, 19: ‘Whatever it took to get you to smile’
Jovanni Oyola always danced and sang at parties in his North Philadelphia neighborhood. Family members like his uncle Wilfredo Pedraza knew they could rely on Jovanni to provide entertainment at these gatherings. “Jovanni lit up the room with a song and dance, he’d tell jokes, or do whatever it took to get you to smile,” […]
Zakiyy Allford, 20, hoped to attend culinary school, open a business with his grandmother
Not every 20-year-old wants to open up a business with their grandmother, but Zakiyy Yasir Allford wasn’t just anyone. “I cook, my mother could cook, my grandmother could cook,” Zakiyy’s grandmother, Sonya Dixon, listed off. “We come from a long line of cooks.” Zakiyy inherited the family talent and was putting his life together, dreaming […]
Mikhaul Armstead, 23, a ‘mama’s boy’ who excelled in the boxing ring
After overcoming some challenges in life — dyslexia, being sent to live in Western Pennsylvania when his mother was sick, brushes with the law — Mikhaul Samir Armstead was finally on the right path. He was making a name for himself in the world of boxing and was training night and day. Every morning, he […]
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Every month, we create a placeholder webpage for each person murdered in Philadelphia. Our hope is to elevate these pages into fully written stories with photos that show who each victim was as a person. Through storytelling, we're shining a light on the human toll of gun violence in Philadelphia.