Gun Violence 265
Emilio Lopez, 18, a humble kid who loved Spanish cooking
When Nilsa Romero had her second son, Emilio, she was a stay-at-home mom for two years, which she was not able to do with her other two children. As a result, she and Emilio had an especially close relationship. “I would never say I have a favorite child, because as a mother you just don’t […]
Jose ‘Pichy’ Rivera, 46, owned a sports bar, loved baseball
When Jose Luis Rivera bought Prime Time Sports Bar in North Philadelphia about six years ago, his family was worried. His mother, especially, didn’t like the neighborhood, and she expressed that to him. “He said everything would be OK and nothing was going to happen,” his younger sister Carmen Agosto said. But on the night […]
Tysheem Pennock, 20: ‘He was trying to be a better everything’
February 2019 was a significant month in Tysheem Pennock’s life. First, his daughter Allure was born on Feb. 16, 2019. And two days later, Tysheem turned 20 years old. Tysheem’s family noticed a major shift in him after the birth of his daughter. “It changed him dramatically,” his aunt Nicole Stone said. “When he was […]
Lamarr M. Boyd, 26, looked forward to becoming a father
Lamarr Boyd and Tiffany Martin were looking forward to welcoming their son into the world. After several miscarriages, they were hopeful that he would be born as planned in November 2018. But the baby was born early, on Sept. 11, 2018, and died the same day. Lamarr and Tiffany were devastated. “He didn’t really show […]
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 […]
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