New Bedford Guide Your Guide to New Bedford and South Coast, MA
Meet Stacey Mendonca, 42-year-old certified occupational therapist assistant for the New Bedford Public Schools.
Stacey had lived a normal life that most in her position would, as an employee, wife, mother, and grandmother until an event that took place during the Summer of 2015 turned her life upside down. On August 2nd, she received the news that no mother ever wants to hear, her 24 year old son, Jeffery Sylvia, Jr. was found murdered in the city’s South End.
In the wake of this tragic event, her family was at a total loss. Although she knows that her son may have not always made the best decisions, nobody should ever be able to choose whether someone lives or dies.
She owes her ability to be able to make it through each day with support from family and friends, grief crisis counseling, which was established by the Victim Advocacy Program days after her son’s death and support from the POMC (Parents of Murdered Children) groups she attends with her daughter.
Having come along way since her son’s death, she wants to impact the community and raise awareness to the Youth about the cause and effects of senseless acts of violence. She has started the J.E.F.F. (Just Envision Future First) campaign in memory of her son to do just that. She is currently raising funds to start a scholarship for a NBHS graduate and to donate a new baseball scoreboard to the GNBYBL, where he played as a child and is hosting the Spare the Pain Bowl-A-Thon to do so. With J.E.F.F. she hopes to be able to stop another family from facing the pain and challenges that she and her family has had to endure in the aftermath of her son’s traumatic passing.
“We have been taught to not put our hand in fire because we know we will be burned. However because the consequence is delayed we don’t think of the severity of our actions. It’s time to get our youth to envision a future self before making a choice that could crush their hopes and dreams for a better future.”
Faces of New Bedford is a project by Colton Simmons. If you are interested in booking a shoot or getting prints from the series email all inquiries to colton@coltonsimmons.com
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