“Let not your heart be troubled, ye believe in God believe also in me. In my Father’s house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you.” -- John 14:1-2

Cousin Andrea Thomas could only read a few lines from a poem before breaking down in tears at the podium of Howard Middle School gymnasium Friday.

Former Newberry head coach Jeremy Luther could barely get through his remarks without choking up several times.

Throughout the gymnasium where funeral services for former Newberry and Orangeburg-Wilkinson student-athlete Kendrick Johnson took place, disbelief and grief was the general feeling expressed by the estimated 270 people in attendance.

“In Romans 8:28, it talks about we know that in everything God works for good for those who love him,” Luther said. “We may not understand why this happened, but we know that something good will come through this.”

Services began with mourning family members and friends approaching Johnson’s casket which was surrounded with flowers and a framed Newberry number 33 jersey. Johnson’s mother, Lisa C. Cheeseboro, led the marching processioners and expressed her grief a moving letter printed in the program written to her son:

“Keni, words cannot describe the pain I have in my heart today. The grief is so unbearable; a mother’s worst nightmare. I would have never imagined that I would have to bury my child. You were a good son and a great role model for your brothers. We will miss you dearly. I ask myself, “How could this happen to a young man with a great future?” I guess GOD had better plans for you. You were taken just when your life and future was so bright. I will always cherish our late night talks, the laughter and especially the love. You will forever be in my heart. I know that you are in good hands and I don’t have to worry about you. I love you son, but GOD loves you best. This heartbreak will last for awhile, but the memories will last forever. Take your wings son.”

Johnson, 23, died a week ago in a pool accident at his girlfriend’s residence in Pendleton where he was completing a summer internship at the local high school. A starting center at O-W, he signed with Newberry College and in three seasons became the school’s all-time blocked shots leader. Johnson’s 235 blocked shots also ranked him second in South Atlantic Conference history and 24th in NCAA Division II.

This past season, Johnson came off the bench at Luther’s behest and helped Newberry rank first in all Division II in blocked shots.

“Keni was a great kid,” Luther said. “He was a quiet kid. As hard as I tried to make it for him, he always responded with ‘Yes sir’ or ‘No sir’.”

Tyrone Clinton, Johnson’s middle school coach at Brookdale, also spoke about Johnson’s humility and respectful manner.

“Everybody in here knows Keni,” Clinton said. “I could sit here all day long and tell you all the good things about (Johnson), but you already know. Everybody in here knows that. As much as I fussed and yelled at Keni, he was never disrespectful. He never talked back. He was just as humble and was always ‘Yes, sir’. But the one thing I noticed about him was he never made the same mistake twice.”

Many of Johnson’s former teammates from O-W and Newberry were in attendance. Jarel Lawrence remembered Johnson as a “humble, special, great person” who played the game of basketball for fun.

Cousin and former Bruin teammate Paul Riley remembered Johnson as being a diehard Green Bay Packers’ fan who initially did not like playing basketball as much. Eventually, Riley said Johnson learned to love the game and saw it as an opportunity to reach higher goals.

“To know Keni was to like him and to like him was to love him,” he said.

Following the services, Johnson was buried at Belleville Memorial Gardens.

T&D Senior Sports Writer Thomas Grant Jr. can be reached by e-mail at tgrant@timesanddemocrat.com or by phone at 803-533-5547. Discuss this and other stories on-line at TheTandD.com.

 

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