New Haven Independent

Jajuana, a student at Wexler-Grant and enthusiastic member of the National Drill Team Squad, was caught in the crossfire of a shooting at her Dickerman Street home Friday. Her untimely death, as well as other recent teen shootings, has spurred a renewed call for an end to teen violence. Her funeral drew hundreds to the Orchard Street church for a three-hour service Thursday morning.

Towards the end of the service, marked by hand-clapping and soulful prayers, Jajuana’s drill team marched through in tribute.

The team’s leader, Doug Bethea, shared a few words about one of its newest, dearly departed members. He told of a strong-willed girl who did things on her own terms: “Nonnie came to the drill team when she was ready to come to the drill team,” and Nonnie came to practice when she wanted to, he said.

Among her friends, she was a leader: She brought six friends to the team, and “if she wasn’t there,” those six friends weren’t either. “That girl was a leader.”

Like everyone who knew Jajuana, Bethea remembered her smile: “You would never know she had a bad day — she always smiled.” He ended with a token of the kind of support the team gives Dixwell kids. “Let’s let everyone know how we get down and what kind of family” we are.

With that, the drill team broke out in choral strength: “We’re the strongest drill team of all drill teams, Holla for a Dolla!” And they ended, in high voices too young to have to be saying these words: “We love you, Nonnie!”

“Nonnie” lived with a sister and newborn baby brother. She took charge at an early age, treating her sister Quanisha like a daughter, family members said. Her grandmother Gertrude called her “pretty toes.” Her grandfather was her “sidekick.” Her favorite character was Winnie the Pooh.

All through the crowd could be seen T shirts and pins reading “RIP Jajuana.” “She was a lovin’, carin’ person,” said her cousin, Andrew Cole (pictured), catching some air outside the church. “It’s just sad that kids is killin’ kids.”

Her father, Sterling Cole, said she liked to dance, would help him cook, and liked to play around, saying ‘Daddy, I’m gonna beat you up!’” She would joke around,”smacking me in the head.” “I’m gonna miss my baby.”

Jajuana’s stepfather, Jaykeen Foreman, wrote in a poem: “I will miss you always Jajuana, especially that big smile.” Family members said he is serving time in prison and couldn’t be at the funeral.

Inside, after preachers’ rousing exclamations of help from above, Mayor John DeStefano took the podium. “There are more victims than just this child … all the children that had to see this,” he said as teary schoolchildren huddled in the pews. The question is: “After today, what do we do?”

DeStefano spoke at the same pulpit 12 years ago at the funeral of another Dixwell youngster shot to death by a bullet meant for someone else: Danielle Monique Taft, a 7 month-old baby. DeStefano, who’s now running for governor, has invoked that funeral in his campaign stump speech. He spoke of how he’d just become mayor when that tragedy occurred, about how he determined that as mayor he would work hard to avoid having to speak at many similar funerals in the future.