Be SMART This Holiday Season by Julie Kimball and Julvonnia McDowell
T
he thoughtful gifts will be wrapped with care. The homemade cookies will be placed on the hearth, waiting for Santa’s arrival. The menorah will be lit, and prayers will be said. Roasts, turkeys, brisket, macaroni and cheese, latkes, black-eyed peas, and pies will be enjoyed by family and friends. Stories will be shared, and music will be played. For everyone, no matter your traditions, bringing joy to children is central to the season. For Julvonnia McDowell, life as she knew it, and the opportunity to create new memories and pass along holiday traditions, will never be the same. One unsecured firearm altered her life forever. On Thursday, April 7th, 52
ELEGANT ISLAND LIVING
2016, only a few hours after speaking to her 14-year-old son JaJuan on the phone, Julvonnia answered a phone call no parent should receive. JaJuan had been shot and was on the way to the hospital. He did not survive. Julvonnia shares her story so that other parents do not have to experience what she is going through. She reflects on how JaJuan was full of life, love, and joy. He had a contagious smile that would light up a room. He was sweet and always willing to help. It is difficult to imagine all the limitless possibilities because his death was 100% preventable. She is now left to imagine what he would be doing and who he would have become. JaJuan was unintentionally shot
and killed while visiting family on his spring break by another teen who was playing with an unsecured firearm that was easily accessible, kept under a t-shirt in a dresser drawer.
