No matter how late Jahsun Ahmad Patton stayed up at night, he still made sure he was up in time to make the long trip from his Northeast Philadelphia home to Boys’ Latin of Philadelphia Charter School in West Philadelphia.
“I would hear him still up at 2 a.m., then I’d hear him closing the door and leaving right on time at 6 every morning,” said his mother Maxayn Gooden. “He would catch a bus to the El, then from the El, another bus, every day. He had that success thing — he decided, ‘I’m going to do this,’ and he did.”
Jahsun was a defensive back for the Boys’ Latin football team, and in the fall of 2017, he suffered an injury on the field that required him to wear a brace from his ankle to knee. He planned to play football in college — he had a 3.5 GPA been accepted to several universities — and was worried that this would be a setback.
But on Thanksgiving weekend of that year, Jahsun’s mind was on gathering with family and celebrating his college acceptances. He decided to head to Harrisburg for the weekend to see his sister on his dad’s side. When Maxayn dropped him off at 30th Street Station, she had no idea that would be the last time she would ever see her son.
On Nov. 25, 2017, Jahsun was shot and killed while in his sister’s Harrisburg apartment. The gunman, a 30-year-old North Carolina man, was convicted of third degree murder and is currently serving a 25 to 50-year sentence.
“No matter what you do to protect them, it can happen anywhere,” Maxayn said.
Jahsun was born April 12, 1999 to Maxayn and his father, Quinn Patton. His name means “God is the center of all things,” Maxayn said. She has two other children, son Nadeem Gooden, 25, and daughter Amyah Hicks, 10.
Jahsun spent his early years in North Philly before his family moved to the Northeast when he was about 13. He was a busy child, Maxayn said, and he enjoyed physical stuff, so she got him into football.
“That became his thing,” Maxayn said. “He loved it.”
Not only did Jahsun love playing, he also discovered a love for coaching. He was hired to coach kids enrolled in Timoteo Christian Flag Football and he brought out the best in his players.
“He worked so hard with those kids,” Maxayn said. “There was one kid, a little tiny boy, who was always disrespectful, and whenever Jahsun would catch him being disrespectful, he’d make him do laps or do push-ups. That kid wound up being the most improved kid on the team, and they actually won the championship. That was Jahsun’s happiest moment because he did that as a coach.”
Football wasn’t Jahsun’s only interest, though. He was also involved with his school’s theater troupe and appeared in two plays. Jahsun was drawn to rap music, too, and he had a few tracks up on SoundCloud.
Jahsun hadn’t decided what he wanted to study in college. He had been considering psychology, but then one day he told Maxayn he planned to be a dentist “because they get paid a lot of money and they help people smile nice.”
“He had a lot of talent,” Maxayn said. “I think for me the most devastating thing is wondering what he would have been with all of that talent.”
Jahsun was a good friend to many, and he’d be there for people even if he was having a bad day himself. After his death, Maxayn heard anecdotes about how kind he was to the people in his life.
“He had a lot of girls who liked him, but they wound up being good friends,” she said. “I remember one of his friends telling me that they went to a movie and she started taking her money out. He said, ‘Put that away, you’re embarrassing me.’ I started smiling because that’s how I raised him, to be a gentleman.”
Since Jahsun’s death, Maxayn has started the JahWorld Memorial Scholarship for youth football players in Philly who get good grades and who demonstrate leadership skills on and off the field. Every year around Jahsun’s birthday, Maxayn raises money through a bowling event to give scholarships of $100 to $500.
It’s also a time to remember and celebrate Jahsun, who would have turned 21 this year. The bowling party is scheduled for April 18 at Thunderbird Lanes on Castor Avenue.
“It’s a way of giving back, number one, and number two, I know how expensive football can get,” Maxayn said. “And I do also understand that football keeps kids out of trouble. So if I can help and give money to a child to be in that, I’m all for it.”
Maxayn feels Jahsun would be happy with what she has done in his memory.
“He knew I liked to help people, and I always say this,” she said. “I always say Jah knew I’d take his death and turn it into something like this because he knew the type of person I am. So he is very proud of what I’m doing. I know he is. I know he is.”
If you are interested in attending Jahsun’s bowling fundraiser on April 18, please email Maxayn at [email protected] to RSVP.
