The loss of a child is never assuaged, but Dwight and Patricia Summerfield tried to alleviate the pain by presenting $41,667 in scholarships to five college friends of their late son, Andrew Joseph Summerfield.
During a ceremony at the Breath of Life Seventh Day Adventist Church in Inglewood on June 23, the Summerfields awarded checks for $8,333.40 each to the close friends of Andrew, who was murdered earlier this year.
According to a Jan. 21 Sentinel article, the View Park Preparatory High School alum and Grand Canyon University student was shot and killed in Darby Park in Inglewood. His father recalled, “On Jan. 5 at 11 a.m., he was sitting in his car after a basketball game and he was brutally murdered.”
Though his life was cut short, Andrew’s family committed to helping his friends achieve their educational goals. “That’s what Andrew would have wanted, to see his friends be successful,” insisted Dwight. Patricia added, “They all had their careers planned about what they wanted to do after graduation.” So, the parents created a GoFundMe page, #justice4drew, to assist the young men.
The scholarship recipients are Jeremiah Fountain, a Syracuse University student majoring in economics; Hasan Harris, an Arizona State University student majoring in social work; Myles Jones, who attends Louisiana State University and studies sociology with a concentration in criminology; Kameron Storrs, who attends Grand Canyon University and studies criminal justice; and Noah Robinson, a student at Westminster College in Salt Lake City majoring in aviation and flight operations.
Also, Robinson dedicated a message where he described Andrew as “more than just a friend. If anything, he was my god-brother and I’ve known him since I was little. We grew up together and watched each other become the people we hoped and dreamed we would become in the future.
“His loss shook me and I’ve still not been able to comprehend the loss that it made in my life. It’s hard for me to process and his death will weigh heavily on me for years and years to come,” said Robinson.
Dr. Todd Barnett, who served as emcee at the program, offered comparable remarks, sharing that he had “known Andrew since he was five-years-of-age and I was his dean when he graduated from View Park High School.”
Attributing Andrew’s academic and athletic success to his parents, Barnett said that he was impressed by the way the Summerfields nurtured their son. “Even despite tragedy, Andrew has rebounded and passed the ball to others to make sure that they win and achieve the goal that they started out,” Barnett said. “Today, we celebrate him and the presence of God in the lives of his parents and all of the work that they have done. We acknowledge them as the real MVPs.”
A native of Inglewood, Andrew played football and rugby for the View Park Knights and was known for his infectious smile and ability to make people laugh. He was also an exceptional student and received the Obama Award for Excellence in Academics while in junior high school.
Andrew graduated from View Park Prep in 2018 and earned an academic scholarship to Grand Canyon University, where he enrolled in the Entrepreneurial Studies track. He also played for the men’s rugby team as a freshman. The COVID-19 pandemic eliminated playing in his sophomore year, however, Andrew planned to participate on the team in the fall of 2021.
His rugby coach, Adam Muszynski, said, “Andrew was a great athlete and respectful, making it easy to give him opportunities on the field.”
In the Jan. 21 Sentinel article, Patricia noted, “Andrew was so loving, caring, and spiritual. He talked about his personal relationship with God– he was bold with his relationship. He had a vision for his future and the family. He loved to laugh and he loved life.”
The Summerfields hope to distribute more scholarships in the future by keeping the GoFundMe account open and using the donations for awards to more deserving students. At the same time, they remain focused and hopeful about bringing Andrew’s killers to justice.
“Our family is going through a lot with the absence of our son. It’s very difficult. We just want the killers who did this to be found and come to justice,” said Dwight.
“The community needs to step up. If you know anything, say something about it. It’s not right that these people are out doing whatever they’re doing and our son is no longer with us. Whoever did this to him, they’re horrible people and it’s not right that this happened.”
There is a $55,000 reward for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the person(s) responsible for Andrew’s death. The Summerfield family donated $30,000 and the City of Inglewood contributed $25,000. To learn more, call Inglewood P.D. Homicide Detective L. Rodriguez at (310) 412-5124. Anonymous tips can be submitted by calling (800) 222-8477 or by visiting lacrimestoppers.org.
Sentinel Sports Writer Amanda Spurlock contributed to this story.
