Wherever he was, Tyrone Armstrong always had a Bible with him. Whether it was his pocket-sized Bible he kept in his car or the one he had in his house, he was always reading and annotating it.
It didn’t start off that way. Tyrone grew up in a mainly Muslim household, but when he was in jail, his friend, Harvey Legend, introduced him to his cousin, who would talk to him about Christianity.
Tyrone felt such a connection with his newfound faith that he got a degree in pastoral ministries because he wanted to create a youth ministry nonprofit within his community once he was released.
At the same time, Tyrone was working as a car carrier trailer. He believed that the first step to building anything, whether it was a business relationship or just everyday living, was to plant faith in the seed and it will never stop growing, said Stephanie Armstrong, his mother.
“He thanked God every day, God is good, God will fix anything, for him, you know, everything was based around God,” Stephanie said. “His faith was important to him, just keeping the faith.”
Tyrone was set to be baptized on Sunday, March 10, 2019, but unfortunately never made it.
Three days earlier on March 7, 2019, an hour after FaceTiming with his mom, Tyrone was shot three times while driving his truck around 49th and Catherine. Police have made two arrests in connection with Tyrone’s murder.
Tyrone Armstrong was born on May 18, 1982, in Southwest Philadelphia to Stephanie Armstrong and Frank Allison, and is the oldest brother of two siblings, Jo’se Devore and Stephanie Devore. He was a father of four children, Keyanna Lane-Armstrong, 21, Tyliah Armstrong, 18, Zekhyi Armstong, 16, Kennedi Armstrong, 15. He has a granddaughter, Kehlani Armstrong, 1, and two nieces, Samirah Roland, 8, and Samiyah Roland, 11.
Tyrone went to Bartram High School but got his GED in 2006. From a young age, he always had his nose in a book trying to learn anything and everything he could.
Aside from being an avid learner, Tyrone was also a self-proclaimed “ladies man.” He was an outgoing, happy-go-lucky person. Tyrone made friends easily and was a trusting person. Whenever anyone needed him, family, friend, or otherwise, he was there.
Family was the most important aspect of Tyrone’s life, and every day he was trying to do better than the last and give his family the best life possible.
“He was trying to make sure he was able to take care of everybody, he wanted to get me a house, he wanted to make sure the kids was getting situated for college and just trying to make sure they didn’t need nothing,” Stephanie said.
Tyrone was doing whatever he could to stay off the streets and become a different person.
Working hard is a lesson he learned from his mom, she taught her family that they can hustle, whether it’s making dresses or selling platters of food, they can do anything they set their mind to.
As a mom, Stephanie was doing her best to take care of her son and help him after he was released.
“I was so worried and trying to protect him in every way I could, but him being a man he was like ‘Mom I’m grown, I’ve got this,’” Stephanie said. “‘No, it’s not the same.’ You might be cool but other people not.”
One thing he knew for sure though was that God was going to be on his side, and faith has helped his mom as she grieves the loss of her son.
“Religion is everything, I’m strong in faith don’t get me wrong, I’m getting emotional, I’m strong in faith, but as a mom, I’m weak,” Stephanie said. “Without being so strong in my faith, I don’t know which way I would’ve gone with this.”
In his free time, Tyrone tried his best to spend as much time as he could with his family. His hugs, kisses, and big smile is what his family will miss the most.
Stephanie tries to remember the positive memories she has with her son, like when her family threw a block party. All of the kids were outside jumping rope and playing with the hula hoop and as a joke Tyrone went in to join them. As he was jumping, his pants fell to his ankles.
“Everyone was cracking up, his pants fell straight to the ground, and you know what he did, he was laughing along with us,” Stephanie said.
Resources are available for people and communities that have endured gun violence in Philadelphia. Click here for more information.
