Mario Pedro picked up a copy of the Philadelphia Daily News every single day. He devoured the newspaper front-to-back, learning about everything happening in the city.
“Every day he made sure he went to the store and got him a Daily News,” Cheryl Pedro, Mario’s mother, remembered. “He just loved to read the whole paper.”
The 34-year-old Mario was known to be an outgoing person who loved to party, but was also quiet-natured. His love for reading the news was a part of his daily routine.
Mario was killed on Feb. 23, 2015 in Strawberry Mansion. He leaves behind his mother and two brothers, Kareem and Donald, along with a son, Isheem, and the daughter he would never have the chance to meet.
Mario was killed on a Monday and buried on Thursday that same week. On that Friday, his daughter was born, and the following day was the baby shower he had excitedly helped to plan.
“He was so excited about having a little girl,” Cheryl said. “He loved his family.”
He had chosen his daughter’s name, Jabyah, and helped pick out all of the details for her baby shower. Mario was getting ready to settle into a larger home with his girlfriend and their two children.
“He was changing his life and changing the type of person he was.”
Despite a rollercoaster of emotions with the loss of her son, Cheryl says that “some joy came out of it,” because of the birth of his daughter.
Cheryl and Mario
Mario’s presence in photos and the memories shared among the family keeps his legacy alive, and keeps his daughter connected to him.
“I have a big picture of Mario in my dining room,” Cheryl said. “She’s like, “that’s my dad!’”
Mario always had a close bond with his mother. As a little boy, he would cling to Cheryl’s leg whenever she tried to leave the house. That childhood attachment developed into a great relationship through to his adult life. He would come to Cheryl for advice and lovingly referred to her as his “queen.”
“He was a mommy’s boy for a very long time,” Cheryl said. “I’d be in my room and he’d lay across my bed and we’d sit there and just talk.”
Mario loved rap music and oldies. One of his favorite songs was “Dear Mama” by Tupac, which to Cheryl, showed her son’s love for her.
Dear mama
Don’t you know I love you?
Dear mama
Place no one above you
Oh mama, I appreciate you
Although my shadow’s gone
I will never leave you
In school, Mario always excelled in mathematics. His now 10-year-old son takes after him and made his school’s honor roll.
At the time of his death, Mario was preparing to start a job in construction, the field that he loved to work in.
“Mario was a loving and caring person,” Cheryl said. “He wanted to spend time with his children as much as possible. He is truly missed.”
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