The Tribune

By JADE RUSSELL

jrussell@tribunemedia.net

THE family of Olympian Shavez Hart said in the final moments of the athlete’s life he was trying to be a “peacemaker” in a fight, but unfortunately was killed in the process.

Sidney Hart, the victim’s father, revealed that Shavez had just returned to his home in Abaco about a year ago after graduating from Texas A&M University, earning a degree in business sports.

According to police, on Saturday a group of men got into a physical altercation in the parking lot of a local nightclub in Mount Hope, North Abaco around 2am, before one of the men left and returned with a firearm.

The gunman then reportedly shot the victim in the chest. He was taken to the local clinic where he was pronounced dead. A suspect was later arrested and taken into police custody.

The grieving father said when he initially heard that his son was killed, he was shocked and was in denial that it was him.

Mr Hart said: “I wondered which Shavez they meant because it couldn’t be my Shavez they were talking about. But then sure enough it turned out to be him; his lifeless body was on the ground just covered up.”

Although Mr Hart was not there when his son was fatally shot, he said some people who were there told him his son was breaking up a fight and protecting one of his former classmates from high school.

“Other people who were there were saying that this argument did not start with my son. It started with somebody else who Shavez recognised because they went to school with him at St George’s. These fellas wanted to beat on the guy, but Shavez intervened.

“He was like the peacemaker, but by intervening my son met his death,” Mr Hart said as he held back tears.

During the interview, Mr Hart said his son was someone who loved to give back despite facing his own challenges.

The father explained that the star athlete was promised a job in the Ministry of Youth, Sports, and Culture however, the job never came through. But that did not stop Shavez from volunteering his time to the local kids in the community.

Mr Hart added: “He was very active in the community. He came home and gave back to the community by training the local kids and organising a basketball camp for them.”

He said Shavez did everything in his power to freely devote his services to empowering the youth through sports.

When asked what kind of person Shavez was, Mr Hart described him as being “humble”, “introverted”, and someone who loved to laugh.

“He was not a show-off, if someone didn’t tell you that was Shavez you could pass him by,” Mr Hart said. “He didn’t boast about any of his achievements. He’s seen all over the world a couple of times and never bragged. He never spoke down to his peers or friends; he just wasn’t that kind of person. He had many rings and gifts that people gave him that he chose not to wear just so he would be a regular boy.”

The distraught father, reflecting on his son’s murder, said it seems this generation cannot reason without things becoming violent or causing someone’s life. But he urged young people to change their ways and to choose a life of purpose rather than pain.

Sharmaine Hart, the victim’s mother, was deeply upset over the loss of her son and noted they had a beautiful relationship with each other.

She was in Freeport getting Shavez’s younger sister ready for school but quickly flew back to Abaco when she heard the heartbreaking news that her loving son had been killed.

Mrs Hart said that when she received the awful news, she was with the mother of Shavez’s child, with whom he shared a 13-month-old son.

Mrs Hart said: “He and I were very close, we weren’t distant at all. I’m not distant with any of my kids, my sons are mummy boys.”

The mother said the day of her son’s murder she had spoken with him on the phone as they regularly would just to catch up.

“I knew that he loved me,” the mother said.

She described her son as a “caring” person who did his best to look out for others and his family.

When asked how she feels that her son fell victim to the rising incidence of gun violence in the country, Mrs Hart said it makes her feel terrible.

Trying to contain her grief, she said: “They seem to wear guns like a keychain in their pockets. They are using guns loosely, the gun violence that’s going on is serious and becoming out of hand.”

Both parents emphasised that they loved their son very much which is why they did their best to support his dreams as a person and an athlete.

The athlete also had three siblings who echoed the same love and admiration for him.

The sprinter represented The Bahamas in the 100m and 200m at the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro.

On September 6, Shavez would have celebrated his 30th birthday.