Community mourns South Holland teen killed in weekend shooting
Community mourns student-athlete after deadly shooting
Family and friends are mourning the loss of a student-athlete killed over the weekend.
CHICAGO - Family and friends are mourning the loss of a South Holland student-athlete killed over the weekend in a deadly shooting.
As they grieve, they are also pleading for answers — and justice — for 16-year-old Davell Antoine Holden III.
What we know:
Nearly 200 relatives and classmates gathered Wednesday evening for a vigil and balloon release in Holden’s honor.
Loved ones say the rising junior at Thornwood High School was an honor student and standout athlete who had dreams of playing college basketball. But on Saturday, August 2, Holden was shot and killed at a residence near 160th Place and Drexel Avenue. According to his mother, he was at a friend's house.
"My son was everything, an awesome young man," said Angela Birts, Holden's mom. "My baby was loved by so many people, and this is just a testament of it."
No one has been arrested for his death.
"First, who and why, why would somebody want to do this to my son," Birts said.
Holden also leaves behind a 9-year-old brother, who, his mother says, looked up to him in every way.
Now, Birts and her youngest son won't get to see Holden finish high school and pursue a college basketball career.
Holden wore No. 21 for the Thornwood Thunderbirds, and on Wednesday, a crowd of peers and family members gathered at the school, where his jersey was hung in his memory.
"He had this deep passion for basketball, and it showed out there on the court," Birts said.
"He was really focused on progression, he wanted to get better, he wanted to see us as a program get better, so we were really focusing on, for him individually, his layup package," said Kay'Shaun Thomas.
Close friends, like Thomas, are sharing what Holden stood for.
"Purity, effort and honesty, that's all he cared about," Thomas said. "Now we gotta put in two times the work, because now we're fighting for a greater purpose."
Blue, white, and silver balloons filled the sky after those closest to Holden shared words of hope and strength with one another — a heartfelt sendoff in his honor.
"I honestly feel great just seeing how many people whose lives were impacted positively by Davell," Thomas shared. "And it shows how many people he cared about.
What's next:
The Village of South Holland and Father Michael Pfleger from Saint Sabina Church have joined together to offer a $10,000 reward for information leading to the arrest of the person or people responsible.
You can submit an anonymous tip online or by phone at 833-805-0187.