At birth, Dominique Kimani Oglesby was diagnosed with a condition called laryngomalacia, which is a narrowing of the air passage that causes a “floppy voice box,” her mother Danielle Shaw-Oglesby explained.
“They said she was not really going to talk louder than a whisper,” she said.
Dominique underwent surgeries at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, and eventually “she could shout the walls off,” Danielle said with a laugh.
Dominique grew to become an intelligent, beautiful woman who loved to sing. She was looking forward to graduating from Penn State and making a good living as a public relations professional, but that would never come to be.
She was placing a food order at a restaurant in West Philadelphia on March 18, 2018 when an argument started, and Dominique was fatally shot in the back. She was 23 years old.
“She was my support system. She was my rock. She was always in my corner, and I will always miss her,” Danielle said.
Danielle and her husband Fareed were 19 years old when Dominique, their first child, was born Sept. 20, 1994 in Philadelphia. They went onto have two more children, Naseer and Nashaan, and Dominique relished her role as the big sister.
Dominique was a natural performer. It was in her blood — Danielle is a singer and actress herself, and her daughter longed to be like her. As a child, Dominique would dress up in wigs, jewelry and makeup and sing for anyone who would listen.
“She had that theme like Patti LaBelle, really fancy,” Danielle said. “She was a lot of fun. She was very boisterous and danced to her own beat.”
School was another area where Dominique thrived. She graduated with honors from Robert E. Lamberton High School and was accepted into Penn State, but she couldn’t let go of music. With her parents’ blessing, she deferred enrollment and took a year off to pursue a music career.
“Just as fast as it came, where she felt as though she was going to dedicate all of her time and effort into that, it showed her that there’s more out there,” Danielle said. “She had to broaden her horizons.”
Rather than enrolling at Penn State’s main campus, she opted for the Mont Alto campus before transferring to the Harrisburg campus. She felt more comfortable with a smaller class size, her mother said.
Dominique decided to put her writing and organizational skills to use and major in communications with plans to carve out a career in public relations. As in high school, she excelled in college and made the Dean’s List each year. She was also inducted into the National Society of Leadership and Success.
As she got ready to graduate, she moved back home because she didn’t want to extend the lease on her apartment in Harrisburg. She commuted to campus a few days a week.
Dominique was a spiritual person and was active in her church. She attended church the morning of her death.
“I want her to be remembered as a God-fearing young lady, a smart young lady, a devoted young lady,” Danielle said. “Just an overall beautiful person. Education was everything, family was everything, humanity meant a lot to her. She never wanted to see anyone without, and she tried to help everyone.”
She also had a wide circle of friends, and that included Kiera Jackson. They met in fourth grade while attending Raising Horizons Quest Charter School and remained best friends for life.
Some people were intimidated by Dominique at first because she was “confident, gorgeous and sassy,” Kiera said with a laugh. “People would say, ‘I thought you were going to be stuck up, but you’re actually cool.’ She was super down to earth.”
Throughout their lives, Dominique always made sure they stayed in contact. Kiera would visit her in Harrisburg, and they’d see each other when Dominique was home in Philly. They’d talk on the phone regularly, finishing every phone call with “I love you.”
“I just loved that because I never did that with any of my other friends,” Kiera said. “That was our thing.”
If Kiera was feeling down or stressed, Dominique would make her talk about it, and that’s what she misses most about her.
She also misses all the fun they had, like their trip to Los Angeles in 2017. Dominique “worked her magic” and got them into the BET Awards.
On May 5, Dominique’s father Fareed accepted his daughter’s posthumous bachelor’s degree at Penn State Harrisburg’s graduation ceremony in Hershey. Eleven days later, police made an arrest in connection with her homicide.
Dominique’s funeral service took place at Ezekiel Baptist Church and she is laid to rest at Fernwood Cemetery.
A portrait of Dominique is included in the latest exhibition of Souls Shot: Portraits of Gun Violence.
Date: 2018-03-18
Location: 5200 Market St, Philadelphia, PA
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