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About Portland observer. (Portland, Or.) 1970-current | View Entire Issue (May 13, 2015)
Page A16 May 13, 2015 Converting Pain into Purpose C ONTINUED FROM F RONT The family was welcomed to Portland by several local moth- ers who are also grieving the loss of their sons to violence on the streets. One mother, Lucy Mashia, spoke of losing her son, Leonard Irving Jr., in 2011 to gang vio- lence. To this day, Mashia does not know who took her son’s life and continues a battle to learn anything about who may have tak- en his life and why. “I just want to know why,” said Mashia. “The suffering is hard for me, when I still don’t have any an- swers, when I still have to ask when someone out there knows how my son died and who killed him.” Dickerson’s father, Bishop Charles Dickerson, a resident of California, also spoke. “Nothing we do today will bring our son back,” he said. “Yet we believe we can avoid this pain for another parent. I am in pain, I cry every day. I believe in God. But we are trying to convert our pain into purpose.” Kate Desmond, the community justice manager at the Multnomah County Department of Justice, shared her plea, “We strive to talk to young men about education and go- ing to school,” she said. “We don’t want to see this happen to anyone.” Multnomah county Deputy District Attorney Eric Zimmer- man also spoke to the family and vowed to help them, and other IDPLOLHV ¿QG WKH DQVZHUV WKH\ VR wished they had, offering support for future generations. “I really do believe in mentor- ship and positive role models,” said Zimmerman. “I would like to turn that 16 or 18 year old look- ing at a struggle in life and show him he can turn himself around. It takes a village to raise a child, and I’m part of that village, and so are you.” A family friend of Dickerson’s mother, Veronica Very, sang and the family came forward to cry and pray. Soon they were joined arm in arm by the other mothers, other community members, and JDQJSUHYHQWLRQRI¿FHUV ³7KLVLVQ¶WWKH¿UVWRUWKHODVW time,” said Very. “I don’t want anybody to have to go through Harris Photography 503-730-1156 Family Portraits $65 Senior High Photos $65 antonioharris@mac.com 4545 N.E. MLK 97211 MultCoPets.or g Code: 5-15Obs Multnomah Multn n o m ah County Cou Animal Services 40 % off 40% off adoption fees w/ad Valid May 1- 31, 2015 (May not be combined with other offers.) 1700 :+LVWRULF&ROXPELD5LYHU+Z\7URXWGDOH25QHDU(GJHÀHOG PHOTO BY O LIVIA O LIVIA /T HE P ORTLAND O BSERVER Dr. Pastor Mark Strong of Life Change Church leads the room in prayer as other family members of slain black youth embrace, including Lucy Mashia and Kimberly Dixon, two Portland mothers of murder victims, and Keonna Jackson, the mother D’Andre Dickerson, a man killed in recent shooting near Woodlawn Park. th but we need to come togeth- this, H HUWR¿QGDQVZHUVEHFDXVHQRRQH Z ¿QG WKHP DORQH ,I ZH FRPH ZLOO to together, I believe we can try and s stop this from happening to other f families, and expose this culture o violence and replace it with of c concern and love for one another.” Crime Stoppers is offering a re- w ward up to $1,000 for information le leading to an arrest in Dickerson’s d Tips can be left at crimes- Lucy Mashia holds up a photo of her only son, Leonard James, death. “L.J.” Irving, who she lost in June 2011. Police still do not know who toppersoforegon.com or by call- shot and killed Irving and Mashia continues to look for answers. ing 503-823-HELP.