East St. Louis is honoring late football phenom with a parade and special day on Monday
In 2019, when presented with the idea of having a day in East St. Louis named after her late son, Sukeena Gunner was overjoyed. She felt like the community understood her pain.
“It was just like wow, for your kid to have his own day, you think of President’s Day, you think of MLK Day, you think of Malcolm X Day, but you never think of a ‘JayDay,’ Just to think where your own child had the impact that other powerful people have, for him to have his own day, it’s breathtaking.,” Gunner said.
Last year, East St. Louis Mayor Robert Eastern III issued a proclamation declaring Nov. 29 as Jaylon McKenzie Day in the city. Since then, Gunner, Jaylon’s mom, has organized a “Jayday” celebration in East St. Louis on that day, which is Jaylon’s birthday. Jaylon, who passed away in 2019, would’ve turned 17 this year.
The second annual parade in his honor will start at East St. Louis Senior High School at 11 a.m. on Monday.
“I just want people to remember who Jaylon was, his smile, the kind, caring person that he was,” Gunner said.
Jaylon McKenzie, a sports phenom who attended Mason Clark Middle School, was fatally shot during a house party in Venice in May 2019. He was 14.
Although Jaylon excelled at other sports, he was mainly known for his prowess on the football field. The running back received scholarship offers from the University of Illinois and the University of Missouri, though he was only in eighth grade. He seemed to be bound for East St. Louis Senior High School in fall of 2019.
Since Jaylon’s passing, six men have been charged in connection with his death, and Gunner has filed a wrongful death lawsuit, which is still pending. Gunner said she hasn’t been in her son’s room since his death. However, she said she’s taking everything “day by day”. Her good days outweigh the bad.
“I’m actually doing OK,” Gunner, of Belleville, said. “I’m doing better than I was last year at this time, so I’m making progress. I’m doing OK. Sometimes, I feel deflated, but I still try to get up and continue to go and stay busy.”
‘Now, go finish’
Leading the Jaylon “6” McKenzie-Rising Star Foundation full-time is among the things that keep Gunner, 44, busy. Created last year, the foundation aims to ensure the success of metro-east youth, continuing Jaylon’s legacy.
The foundation hosted its first, free football camp last summer and regularly holds community service events in the area. For example, the foundation organized a school supply drive in September.
Gunner said she hopes for the foundation to have a community center in the area that can be a safe space for children. It’s what Jaylon would’ve wanted.
“I put Jaylon in a running back skills training at an early age, and while I was sitting on the sidelines watching him play, I would always hear his coach say ‘Now, go finish’ and whatever drill he did, his words to Jaylon was always ‘Now go, finish’,” Gunner said. “Jaylon kind of embedded that in his head to where when he played football, when he played basketball, when he ran track, his goal was to go finish. Go finish could’ve been making a basket, winning first place in a race, scoring a touchdown.
“His mentality was to always go finish. That kind of became my mentality. No matter how hard it may get, no matter how tough my battles are, I can finish.”
The foundation is hosting Monday’s parade. Gunner said the community’s support has been overwhelming.
“And I’m not over exaggerating, I think it was like 150 cars lined up and we paraded through the city of East St. Louis along with the mayor of East St. Louis,” Gunner said of last year’s event. “The fire department came. The chief of police escorted us and there was a motorcycle club that came and kind of stopped traffic for us. It was amazing. We had a float, which I’ll do a float again this year. Last year was his 16th birthday, so that was like a sweet 16.”
Andersyn Watts, Jaylon’s godsister, was also struck by the community’s support last year, especially considering it was her idea to have a Jaylon McKenzie Day in the city. She presented the idea to the mayor last year.
“I was happy,” Watts, of Belleville, said about the proclamation. “I was actually really happy because I didn’t think they were going to really do it. It brought his mom a lot of joy and his family, like his dad and also his brother, to feel like they support them and Jaylon. It was like (the city) was right there with them. It kind of made me feel good that I could help them do that.”
An only child, Watts considered Jaylon her real sibling. She was moved to tears when talking to the mayor about her idea.
“I’m still hurt from it, but I have done something to try to give back to the community,” Watts, 22, said. “I even started coaching the girls’ basketball teams at Mason Clark just to help kids and start doing stuff that I know he’d want me to do.”
Easter remembers Watts’ display of emotion. He said it’s what moved him to issue the proclamation. He knew what Jaylon meant to the community.
“I was taken aback,” Easter said. “It floored me that the young people, his peers, wanted to keep honoring him. I just wanted to make sure that I did anything I could do in my power to contribute to his legacy still being continued in a positive manner. (Watt is) the only child, and they still have that kinship of sibling. What made it so touching with her is that I know Andersyn. I’ve never seen her cry before, and she broke down and cried and that’s what really touched my heart.”
The impact Jaylon’s death had on the community remains on the mayor’s mind. He was elected roughly a month before Jaylon died. The mayor encourages people to continue praying for his family and others who have lost a child due to gun violence.
“It was the first tragedy that happened when I became mayor,” Eastern said. “It wasn’t in our city, but he’s from, his parents are from and his legacy is from East St. Louis. That just rocked the city. It was difficult. I actually still have on my desk right now his bookmark that was given out at his funeral, so when I go into my office, that’s one of the first things I do, and it’s a reminder to me.”
Monday’s parade will start at East St. Louis Senior High School at 11 a.m. and end at East St. Louis School District 189’s administration building. Following the parade, there will be a balloon release at Lake View Funeral Home and Memorial Gardens in Fairview Heights, where Jaylon was buried.
“Although he’s not here physically present with us, we can still celebrate him and the legacy that he left behind, the impact he left on the community (and) his friends and just come out and have a good time,” Gunner said. “To have him smiling down on us to show him that we’re still here doing the work that he started. He always talked about making a difference. His ultimate goal was to make it to the NFL and come back to give back to his community.”
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