ENGLEWOOD — A small group of Johnson College Prep students were surprised Thursday afternoon when Chicago Police Officer John Bertetto presented the school with an SUV.
The vehicle was purchased with GoFundMe donations after Bertetto set out to get kids to and from school activities safely. He exceeded his goal by $550, raising a total of $5,550.
Bertetto created the page after the 2014 shooting that killed 15-year-old Demario Bailey.
The teen had been walking to basketball practice when he was shot. His twin brother Demacio was with him when they were jumped in a robbery attempt on West 63rd Street, according to prosecutors.
Bertetto was assigned to the case and shortly after Demario’s alleged killers were charged, Bertetto created the GoFundMe page. He said he wanted to find a way to prevent someone else from being murdered. The SUV is for staff to pick up and drop off students participating in extracurricular activities.
Bertetto said he got to know Demario’s mother and twin brother well during the investigation.
“For him to come here and continuously show his support to me and my family and the JCP family, it’s awesome,” said Demacio, who lives in Chatham. “It shows that someone hasn’t forgotten about my family and me going through the struggle I went through.”
The teen said his brother would have loved the gift.
“He would be like ‘wow,’ and he would just be surprised,” Demacio said.
Demacio described his twin as quiet, cool, and supportive. He had lots of friends. He would help him with his homework after school.
Close friend Jaquan Gibson, 16, said he connected with Demario the first day of school. The boys were in the same advisory group which met twice a day. Group members spend all four years of high school together, so they grow close.
Jaquan said his friend’s death made him realize that he shouldn’t get into petty arguments with friends and that it’s important to stay together because “you never know what could happen to that person.”
Jaquan said he is happy about the SUV because it will make commuting much safer.
“Instead of us taking the bus, or walking, or the train, now we have a ride,” he said.
Classmate Kelsey Redmond-Smith, 17, of Englewood said they all appreciate the vehicle.
“I think it’s a great gift ... because we all cherished Demario. We still love him,” he said.
School principal Matthew Brown said he’s grateful for the generous gift, and the students’ safety has always been a top priority for him and his staff.
“We take it very serious that they feel very safe getting off the Red Line here and getting off the bus,” he said. “I don’t know what’s on the other end of the Red Line, I don’t know what another neighborhood is like, so for us the car makes it much easier to take kids safely to a slam poetry competition or a basketball game.”
He also said the donation shows kids that police officers do care about the communities they serve.
“With all that’s going on, it’s special for them to be reminded that there are tons of officers who are giving their lives and efforts every day to improve the lives of our kids,” Brown said.
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