Isaiah Batties always had a smile on his face, and he had a knack for making others feel good too.
“He was really nice and always had a positive attitude about things. And we always thought he was a little bit of a comedian,” said his sister, Diane Precht.
Isaiah, who was killed in Wissinoming on Sept. 29 at age 31, was diagnosed with sickle cell anemia at a young age, and he had to get frequent treatments throughout his life.
“He was always in the hospital, every couple of months for treatments, but during all that he never complained about his sickness and always kept a positive attitude,” said Diane, who said he was the youngest of six children.
Despite his infirmities, the illness, which claimed one of his sisters some years back, was severe enough that it prevented him from getting a full-time job, but it didn’t keep him from being helpful member of his large family.
Isaiah always made sure to take time to help another sister, whom he lived with, care for her kids, and he enjoyed playing video games with them, or entertaining them with jokes or with with his sketches. Isaiah was a talented artist, Diane said. He also helped with homework and would tinker with computers with his nephews.
“Even with friends and all the guys in our old neighborhood, he was always trying to help out, and help support anything his friends would need,” said Diane, who noted the family grew up in Port Richmond. “He was like their big brother type of friend. He always tried to make sure he was a good role model for them as far as doing the right thing, which is kind of hard because growing up where we grew up, there were a lot of things going on.”
When the area started turning bad about four years ago, Isaiah and his sister moved to another neighborhood, but the trouble just seemed to follow.
“We just don’t understand how did someone could do that?” Diane asked. “He was a really good guy, and it just hurts us so bad.”
A reward of up to $20,000 if available to anyone that comes forward with information that leads to the arrest and conviction of the person responsible for Isaiah Batties’ murder. Anonymous calls can be submitted by calling the Citizens Crime Commission at 215-546-TIPS. Information can also be submitted to the Philadelphia Police Department online or by calling 215-686-TIPS.
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