Jules Aurel Noukeu Jugnia — a young person leaves his entire community in mourning

Committed, passionate, ambitious — these are the words that best describe the young Jules Aurel Noukeu Jugnia, who tragically lost his life during a basketball game on 8 August. Jules died at the age of 17 from a heart attack.

Jules vibrated with an enormous joy of life. Jules was a son, a friend, a colleague, a young person. Today, eager to alleviate the immense suffering of his mother and his loved ones, friends are organizing a Jackpot to help them cover the costs associated with the funeral and the repatriation of Jules to Cameroon, his country of origin, where he will rest near his family.

“You left us doing what you loved: playing sports in front of your friends, your work team and in the neighborhood you used to live in,” wrote DOD Basketball in an Instagram post. Jules had been attending this community organization since he was 14 and had even become an employee and worker there. Meeting with members of his circle, whose objective is to perpetuate his presence, despite his tragic end.

Words of a bereaved mother: “I don't want her death to be forgotten”

“I had a good teenager who liked young people,” Valérie, the mother of the deceased, tells us. She welcomes us home in these difficult times. An altar was set up in the center of the apartment in homage to Jules.

For Valérie, losing her only son was the most difficult ordeal she ever had to go through. “He was my best friend,” she said. He told me everything: his problems, his worries, his heartaches, etc. There were no secrets between us.” She had worked hard to build a special relationship with her son, and she never imagined that she would have to say goodbye to him forever.

“He was a good boy, organized, ambitious,” she says. He was honest with no fuss. He had so much hope for his neighborhood and for his young people! Basketball and young people were his whole life.” Involved in his community, Jules even planned to leave his part-time job in a café to devote himself full time to the community.

“He was so busy and took good care of himself. He was active, ate well, and it was good to live with him,” she adds, devastated. Valérie still doesn't understand why Jules had a heart attack and wonders if her son had an undiagnosed health problem.

Very close to his mother, he meant everything to her. “When he saw that I was worried about him, he always reassured me by laughing at me or by making jokes to make me laugh. When he came home late because of his work, he always called me to reassure me, to tell me where he was — when he got on the bus, when he arrived, to the minute, etc.,” she recalls.

While the moments she is currently experiencing seem unclear and uncertain, she is convinced of one thing: the death of her son should not be ignored. “I don't want his death to be forgotten, I want him to be remembered forever, for his kindness and empathy.”

“I have a black hole instead of a heart,” says Valérie. “I lived for him, I hope that we will pay tribute to him as long as possible,” she says.

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Perpetuate your name in Saint-Léonard

Benjamin Dickson knew Jules well. Ben, by his nickname, is a coach at DOD Basketball. He met Jules when the latter was only 14 years old. “Even when he was only a participant, at 14, he was the first to arrive and the last to leave. He was very motivated, he wanted to get involved a lot,” recalls Benjamin.

The following year, a place as an animator was freed up in the team. Jules did not hesitate to give his resume. “He really wanted to get involved, repeats Benjamin Dickson. He was given this opportunity, it was his first work experience, and from there he became a member of our family,” the 22-year-old coach tells us, with a thoughtful look on his face.

While we were sitting in a small dog park, Beverley Jacques, founder of the DOD Basketball organization and a speaker, joined us. He and Benjamin greet each other, make jokes and sit on a table in the park, while a few dogs come to have fun looking for us to caress.

“Jules was an ambassador. He was so motivated, he was looking for solutions to everything and had big plans, Beverley starts. When we reached an agreement with Starbucks to take young people and employ them, he immediately seized the opportunity,” he said.

Despite this, her love for her community and her commitment to her, especially to the young people in her neighborhood, still worked for Jules. In a fit of nostalgia, Beverley pulled out her phone to let us hear a message that Jules left her a few days before she died and in which we hear her say: “I really want to go back to working full time in the community, with young people. I like Starbucks, but what I'm passionate about is basketball and you.”

“When the news of his death started to circulate, everyone was shocked. Library employees, long-time friends and even former professors came out last week to take part in the vigil organized in his honor in the park where he lost his life,” added the 40-year-old speaker. For him and Benjamin, the impact that Jules had on his family is considerable.

“And he did Everything That was only 17 years old, exclaims Benjamin. Inspiring young people, training others, raising their awareness, spreading joy around them, wanting to go further. He was already a role model for young people, while he was still a role model himself.”

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A basketball court “Jules Aurel Noukeu Jugnia”

“In a sad moment like this, we need to get a little closer to each other. You have to continue to feel like the family you are,” Beverley said. He also asks anyone who wants to participate to help young Jules' parents, as they “have lost the only reason they had to continue working and living.”

The DOD Basketball association will take steps at the municipal level to have the court where Jules lost his life renamed in his name. “That's how we can do him justice, because his name and his story will go further than all of us, and that's what he deserves,” thinks Beverley. This is the impact that Jules had on him. “I am frustrated that he is no longer there, but I laugh, I live, I watch his videos, I hear his voice, and I will continue to keep that spirit with me,” he adds.

Renaming a court in memory of Jules is also a way for the City of Montreal and the borough of Saint-Léonard to make it clear to young people that they listen to them, that they see them and that they consider them as fully-fledged citizens, thinks the founder of DOD Basketball. “It is also to give Jules and all those who look like him the respect they deserve. It is a way of recognizing young people and their presence, of saying that we appreciate them and that we are grateful for who they are,” he explains.

The park where the said basketball court is located is located in the center of the Saint-Léonard district, just behind the town hall. It borders the aquatic complex and the neighborhood library and is within walking distance of Antoine-de-Saint-Exupéry High School, which the teenager actually attended.

A few days after the tragedy, we meet some young people at the end of the evening when they throw balloons at the basket on the ground where Jules died. They tell us that they would like to rename the park in the name of the deceased. “Jules was always here, and even though we didn't know him personally, we all knew who he was,” explains Michael, one of the young people who frequented the basketball court. “He always trained here. Of course, if we named this court after him, it would only be logical,” adds the 15-year-old teenager who is also a basketball enthusiast.

In Saint-Léonard, members of the district council say they are “very sensitive to the death of young Jules Aurel Noukeu Jugnia”. With regard to the project to rename a place in the district in his honor, the elected officials explain the following: “The toponymy of the city requires meeting very specific criteria that apply to all boroughs” — which could lead to delays in renaming the land. For example, when a toponymy request is submitted to Montreal, it is the City of Montreal's Toponymy Committee that must analyze and approve the request, before sending it to the borough concerned. In addition, one of the criteria including City requires respect when it comes to toponymy, is that a place cannot bear the name of a person who died less than a year ago.

However, the council assures the following: “At the borough, we are considering and in contact with partners in the community to find a way to honor his memory.”