NEW ORLEANS — To Charlotte Hayward, her son’s trucker hat is more than just a hat.
“This was actually the hat he had on the night that this incident happened,” said Hayward.
That incident was last weekend, when Brandon Hayward, 32, was shot and killed in New Orleans.
“August 3rd was just this ‘you got to be kidding me,” said Hayward.
His mom says he went to a party at The Island, a bar in the 3100 block of St. Roch Ave. Less than ten minutes later he was dead after she says someone started an altercation.
“He never was about the violence of anything. So, for me to see my child lose his life to violence, I felt like a statistic,” said Hayward.
To friends Hayward was a mentor known as “Phatz,” a nickname he picked up as a kid. To family he was a comedian, an animal lover, a sous-chef for his mom’s catering business, a visual artist, and a self-taught musician.
“We’re going to miss him, the beautiful spirit that comes in and lifts everybody up. We’re going to miss that,” said Hayward.
Through the grief of losing her youngest of four kids, Hayward hopes something good will happen.
“We are all we’ve got. We have to take back our community. We have to do this ourselves,” said family friend and founder of the H.O.P.E. organization Michael Willis.
Willis says he sees senseless violence shatter too many families. He says communities must do a better job of rejecting violence.
“We can’t lose our hope, we can’t lose our faith. This is a spiritual, mental, physical war that’s going on,” said Willis.
“I know that he is going to be guiding and helping us now,” said Hayward.
Through ups and downs, Hayward says her son was always known to give encouraging words. To keep that spirit alive, she’s framing his beloved hats, and giving them out.
“If they loved Phatz and they need some reassurance, and they need help, and they need support in their business, in their home, and in their life, he’s going to hang his hat there,” said Hayward.
As of Wednesday afternoon, there have been no arrests or named suspects in this case.
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