Yohannon Shemuel Alexander had a spark about him that made people want to be in his presence.
“He was the type of person who drew people to him like a magnet, regardless of their age, sex or nationality,” his mother Regina Neely said. “That’s the type of spirit he had. He was very comical and he kept people laughing. He was a good friend.”
Yohannon, whose nickname was Yo, was creative and loved figuring out how things worked. From an early age, he would take his toys apart, and that continued into adulthood, when he did the same with cars.
That led to a career in automotive sales. After a few years, Yohannon was laid off, but quickly found a job working as a security guard at Home Depot because he needed to provide for his 2-year-old son, Josiah.
A few weeks later, on Dec. 7, 2014, Yohannon was shot and killed while in the driver’s seat of his car. He was 23. No arrests have been made.
After his death, his family learned how he touched people’s lives in ways they were not aware of.
One friend told a story about how he had been working at Franklin Mills Mall and missed the last bus back to Philadelphia. He called friends and family, but it was late at night and nobody would come to pick him up. He started to walk home, then realized it wasn’t feasible, and decided to call Yohannon.
“My son said, ‘I’ll be right there,’” Regina said, and he got his friend home safely. “He was a big helper.”
Yohannon was born in Philadelphia on Jan. 3, 1991 to Regina and his father Dwight Alexander. He had two older sisters, Remah and Zipporah.
He grew up attending church, and it was there that he discovered his love for playing the drums. By the time he was about six, he was good enough to play during service.
Although Yohannon enjoyed science, he wasn’t particularly studious. After graduating from West Philadelphia High School in 2009, he attended the Automotive Training Center in Warminster to be a mechanic.
He secured a full-time job with Chapman Ford of Horsham, starting out driving and organizing cars around on the lot, then was promoted to sales.
Yohannon’s son Josiah was born in 2012, and they spent every weekend together. Josiah was 2 years old when his father died, but despite being so young, he still remembers him, Regina said.
Regina, who is retired, was given custody of Josiah, which means she is now doing the childcare tasks she hasn’t done in more than 20 years, when Yohannon was a kid.
“It hasn’t been easy because I was used to being by myself. My house was quiet, it was just me. Now I have this 4-year-old chatterbox,” Regina said with a laugh. “But we’ve adjusted a lot since he first came, and he is a good child. He’s like his dad. He has a good heart and a very good spirit.”
Also like his dad, Josiah is interested in science. Next year, he will be attending Math, Science and Technology Community Charter School III (also known as MaST III), which opens in September.
The similarities don’t end there. They look alike, and Josiah shares Yohannon’s knack for taking stuff that others would see as trash, like aluminum foil, string and cardboard boxes, and trying to make something out of them.
Josiah isn’t as outgoing and adventurous as Yohannon, though, Regina said. He’s more cautious. But he shares his father’s willingness to be helpful.
Josiah sleeps in Yohannon’s former bedroom and has a picture of his dad on his bookcase. Yohannon is a frequent topic of conversation in their house.
Although no arrests have been made Regina said that her spirituality has helped her heal since Yohannon’s death.
“I just have my peace in knowing that my son is with the Lord and he is at peace,” she said. “Whether they get this person for what he did is not going to bring my son back.”
Yohannon is laid to rest at Merion Memorial Park in Bala Cynwyd, Pa.
