Mother of 13-year-old killed while raking leaves starts foundation to mentor at-risk youth
IIt's a time of the year so many in the DMV enjoy: crisp fall nights with the leaves changing colors. But for Juanita Agnew, the autumn nights serve as a painful reminder, as she approaches the two-year anniversary of the murder of her then-13-year-old son Jayz.
On November 8, 2022, the night of the election, Jayz was raking leaves in the family's front yard. In an instant, .
First responders took Jayz to the hospital, days later on November 11.
"The fall, for me, reminds me of falling leaves, and falling leaves remind me of Jayz because he was raking leaves. This time of the year, it's important for us to do something monumental because it's a sad period just because of the timing of his killing," Agnew said.
A Prince George's County Police spokesperson told 7News "The case is by no means closed," and to find the child's killer.
In the meantime, Juanita Agnew said she could not just sit back and do nothing.
She told 7News she is forming the Jayz Agnew Foundation.
"Our target audience is teenagers. Our focus is that age gap between 13 and 19. Our objective, really, is to teach them, the youngsters, life skills. It's to help them transition from teenager to adulthood. We're teaching coping skills, how to get ready for a career, how to get ready learning different types of trades, mentorship, that kind of thing," Agnew said. "What we intend to do is give them an option, give them other things to look at as alternatives, as a deterrent, maybe, to crime."
In doing this, she said she's not just honoring her son, but also looking to bring about change.
The Jayz Agnew Foundation will provide mentorship and training for at-risk youth in Prince George's County.
By doing this, Agnew said she's hoping she can reach the county's youth at a critical point in their lives and steer them away from violence, with the hopes this will prevent tragedies similar to what she and her family have suffered.
"What we're seeing is they have so many teenagers, juveniles, who may know how to use a gun, but not a screwdriver, or may not know how to use a drill, or how to change a light bulb. What we want to do is to give them something else they can do as an alternative, instead of turning to guns or turning to skills, that they can have marketable skills," Agnew said.
Agnew is also a member of , and has organized since her son's death.
This case has also captured , who have taken actions likeentering a partnership with a nonprofit to bring .
She is officially launching the foundation at the Gun Violence Awareness Walk on November 16, which is five days after the two-year anniversary of her son's death.
"It's therapy. I've been able to channel my energy and channel my pain into something positive," Agnew said. "So, that helps me to keep going."
You can learn more about the .
