Jeremiah and Demonte, 'just kids,' mourned as victims of gun violence

Just two summers ago, Demonte Walker was a 13-year-old carrying a burly black-and-white puppy in his arms, showing up at a pet clinic because he wanted to take care of him right.

Three summers ago, his friend Jeremiah Stewart was a 13-year-old laughing with a football in his arms, finding joy with his team.

Adults — mentors — who knew those boys are now heartbroken that both were gunned down in the 3600 block of Wabash Avenue on Monday night, Jeremiah at the age of 16, and Demonte, only 15.

"My kids grew up with these kids," said Benjamin Muldrew, 48, the coach of Jeremiah's youth football team, SCM Ridahs. "They were just kids."

Police need help to solve their killings, a spokesman said. Few details have been released. Both youths were suffering from fatal gunshot wounds when officers arrived. The shooter remains at large, and police have released no suspect information.

News of Demonte's death hit the staff at Spay and Neuter Kansas City "like a wave," said spokesman Scott Cotter.

Ramona Hayes worked in the clinic's Families Better Together program at 59th Street and Troost Avenue when Demonte came in for help.

"He was a kid who really loved his dog," Hayes said. "He called him his son, and he wanted to do his best by him."

He lived a few blocks away and carried the mixed-breed puppy in his arms to the clinic. The puppy, named Chops, was neutered there and got its vaccinations. Demonte returned regularly to get help with things like flea treatment and nutrition.

A social worker helping Demonte had told him caring for a dog could be good for him, Hayes said, and Demonte was mowing yards to earn money to help support the costs of caring for his pet.

When his lawnmower broke down, the pet clinic helped secure him a replacement.

A mentor of Demonte, Nesha Smith, who "coached" him in school, lamented over the efforts she said Demonte had made to get his grades up and make his school's track team. She remembered how he made her laugh.

"It hurts so much to see how gun violence is taking these young lives," she wrote on Facebook. "One of the most difficult parts of working in a school is hearing that a child with their entire life ahead of them has it stolen. This has to stop. Life is so precious."

Muldrew met both Demonte and Jeremiah three summers ago when the two close friends heard about Muldrew's SCM football team.

Jeremiah ended up playing with the team that season, Muldrew said.

SCM — for "Socially Conscientious Men" — aims to help mentor youth through sports, Muldrew said.

Jeremiah was "a kid who just needed some guidance," he said. "I thought he would straighten out. I was heartbroken" by the news of his death. "This is crazy."

He remembered video he had taken during one of the lighter moments of a summer practice. It captures boys just running around in shorts and T-shirts, each kid taking turns running with the football, trying to beat the whole group of swarming tacklers.

Jeremiah is laughing, sprinting one way, cutting back the other, smiling even as he is ultimately corralled and hauled down to the grass. That's the child Muldrew remembers.

"It makes me want to try harder," he said. "You want to save them all."

Anyone with information on the shooting is asked to call the TIPS Hotline at 816-474-TIPS (8477).