JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Nearly a week after a 7-year-old boy was shot and killed while walking down the street, his family held a candlelight vigil to celebrate his much too short life.
Dozens gathered at Johnnie W. Walker Park in Jacksonville Grand Park neighborhood to share their memories of Breon Allen.
Many people spoke about Allen’s love for football, his jokester ways and his kind heart.
“Breon is my friend, and we always played football together.,” one student said.
“He was my sour patch kid. Only thing he wanted to do is win that football game,” Allen’s football team mom said at the vigil.
Mayor Donna Deegan extended her condolences and offered support to the family, saying she is working to change the narrative in the city.
Watch the entire vigil below:
“I can’t make it better right now. We’re trying to make it better. I just want you to know that we love you and we’re here for you, and we want to make sure these babies are okay,” Deegan said. “We have to do better. This shouldn’t be something we do regularly.
Some community members turned their messages to Deegan in a plea for help and accountability.
One man who grew up in Grand Park said he knew Breon’s father. He shared a message of concern with the mayor:
“I’m glad you’re here. It’s a lot of stuff that when I was growing up, these kids don’t got. It’s nothing for these kids to do,” he said. “There’s a lot of stuff we can do as a whole, but there’s a lot of stuff that the people downtown can do, too.”
Breon, who was affectionately known as “Dusse,” was tragically killed last Friday in a shooting while simply going about his daily routine, walking to the store with his cousin, 21-year-old Lafayette Mango Jr.
The shooting happened off Commonwealth Avenue on Jacksonville’s Westside.
“I just don’t want my son’s name to die. I don’t want it to ever die,” said Casheena Love, Breon’s mother.
Breon and his cousin were walking down the street when several people got out of a car and started shooting at them. They were both rushed to the hospital, where Breon died from his injuries.
The president of Grand Park said after seeing years worth of shootings and deaths, Allen’s death was the one that hurt the most.
“We do need help out here to continue to try to help these kids,” he said.
Allen’s grandmother said he was her 50th birthday gift.
“One of the best presents you could ever get,” she shared. “He took a chunk of my heart with me, but he left so much good, laughter and kindness. His memory is in our hearts, our minds and our soul.”
“He was just doing his usual daily activities. Baby was a store runner, he loved to go to the store. He was going to hustle everybody for a dollar or two, you know, so he could go to the store, and that was his thing, and that was everywhere he went,” Love shared. “Nothing he did that day was out of the norm for him.”
Since the community learned of Breon’s death, they have shown Love and Breon’s family an outpouring of support.
“I see all the love and support from the community, social media, and I thank them. For everybody who’s coming forward and having something to say, who is trying to help us get justice,” Love expressed.
An enhanced reward of up to $25,000 has been offered by First Coast Crime Stoppers for information that leads to an arrest. Executive Director Chase Robinson says they got multiple tips after the first reward enhancement and are hoping more tips will lead to an arrest soon.
Investigators found the vehicle involved and it is being processed.
The family and sheriff’s office continue to ask if anyone has information that would help identify those responsible to call JSO at 904-630-0500 or CrimeStoppers at 1-866-845-TIPS.