Tyrese Caesar Foundation 5K Walk and Run sends message against gun violence

Bay Street Esplanade was abuzz with energy and determination on Saturday as participants gathered for the second annual Tyrese Caesar Foundation 5K Walk and Run, aptly themed “Peace-ing It Together.” The event, spearheaded by Jacqueline Caesar, the foundation’s chairman and mother of the late Tyrese Caesar, seeks to spread a powerful message against gun violence.

Reflecting on the significance of the event, Caesar expressed both gratitude and a bittersweet resolve. “This is year number two of the Annual Tyrese Caesar Foundation 5K Walk and Run. The theme is ‘Peace-ing It Together.’ The response from registrants has been incredible, with many returning for the second year.

“We are so happy to have them on board,” she said, her face lighting up with a hopeful smile. “I think we have a good spirit here, and everyone is ready to go. They’re raring to get the message of non-violence out on the road, so others can understand the gravity of the issue, especially given the recent upsurge in violence that we’ve been facing. It makes our mission even more real and necessary.”

The emotional toll of losing her son is something Caesar carries with her every day. “As far as gun violence is concerned, you never really recover from it,” she explained, her voice trembling slightly. “One person loses their life, but the parents are sentenced to a lifetime of hurt, pain, and grief. It never goes away. It is not easy to drive behind a hearse. You die a thousand times before you get to the grave.”

Jacqueline Caesar.

Tyrese was one of the two men killed in a shooting incident at Orange Cottage, St Joseph on June 29, 2022. Officers from the Barbados Police Service (BPS) had responded to the area around 11:30 p.m. after a “number of explosions” were heard.  On arrival, they discovered the bodies of 20-year-old Caesar of Durants, Christ Church, outside the Cottage Bar and Grill; and 34-year-old Trae Harris of French Village, St Peter. Another man, 19-year-old Seth Towler of Heddings, St Philip, was also injured and taken to the hospital. They had been attending a birthday lime at the time of the shooting.

The Foundation Chair, making a heartfelt plea to the public before the start of the 5K noted: “Please don’t put another mother through this,” she implored. “The youth today seem to have lost their moral compass. It has become far too easy to take a life, to gun someone down without a second thought. But that man had a family, a mother who will never, ever experience a normal life again. You don’t just lose one life; you lose two. And the impact multiplies, affecting an entire family and shattering a future full of potential.”

She reflected on her loss and the profound emptiness that remains. ” My only son, my only child, lost his life to senseless violence.  In my position, Tyrese was all I had. His life was taken too soon, and the void he left will never be filled.”

The Tyrese Caesar Foundation continues to honour his memory and work tirelessly to promote peace and non-violence, hoping to prevent other families from experiencing the same loss. (RG)