Syracuse, N.Y. — A 30-year-old man who spent the last three years dedicating hours to coaching children in the Central New York area was killed in a shooting Sunday.
Jamar Mack and another man were shot Sunday around 2:26 a.m. at the Valley Plaza in the 4100 block of South Salina Street, police said.
Mack was taken to Upstate University Hospital where he was pronounced dead. The other man shot, Marquis Stanley, 34, arrived at Crouse Hospital a short time later and is in stable condition, police said.
Mack for three years coached for the Salt City Renegades, a travel youth football organization.
Justin Kozlowski, the president of the football organization and a friend of Mack’s, spent Sunday informing his team about Mack’s death.
“It definitely hit home,” Kozlowski said. “Definitely changed my Father’s Day.”
The team and many others spent their Monday evening at the team’s home field, Burnham Park in Mattydale, holding a celebration of the coach’s life.
A sea of orange and black, the teams’ colors, could be seen as attendees lit candles and released balloons.
Mack was the head coach for a 13-year-old team. There were more than 20 kids on the team, and he wanted each of them to succeed in life, Kozlowski said.
“He coached them hard, he definitely did, “Kozlowski said. “He had an ability to get the most out of them. Just with him pushing so hard, to make them believe in themselves so that they can get better.”
Mack didn’t have kids playing football. Mack had a 1-year-old son, and a daughter, Kozlowski said. He dedicated hours to checking up on his players, driving them to and from games, or even making sure they were doing ok in school, he said.
“For anyone to not have a kid in the program, to give all that time up to help other kids and coach is a gift in itself,” Kozlowski said. “Not a lot of people could do that. But he was really just passionate about football, passionate about helping kids.”
Mack made sure to tell the kids he coached not to go down the wrong path in life, get a good education and to stay out of trouble, Kozlowski said.
Robert Drummond, 56, formerly played for Syracuse University and the Philadelphia Eagles.
Drummond said he knew Mack since Mack was a kid, but he rekindled with Mack after he retired and returned to Syracuse. Drummond gave Mack advice on how to coach the Syracuse Renegades.
Drummond said he became a mentor to Mack; they would talk every week. He said throughout his football career he has taken many young men under his wing and watch them grow into gentleman who are passionate about the sport. Losing Mack was tough, he said.
“To watch him do it, and to have so much pride in him, he always called me big bro, he always called me his big brother.”
Mack became so much more than a coach from the sidelines, Drummond said. He became someone they can depend on, he said.
“These kids, they loved him, and they believed in him, “Drummond said. “It’s a sad day when we live in a world when someone who is doing such positive things can have a fate that’s stolen from him like this.”
Drummond said there’s a lot of pain left behind from losing Mack. But Drummond said hopefully Mack’s team can remember him by continuing down the path he led them down.
“Get out there and have the passion like what he did for you every day,” he said.
Another celebration of life will be Monday at Farone & Sons Funeral Home at 1500 Park St. Calling hours will be from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. with the funeral to follow immediately after, the family shared on Facebook.
Mack is survived by his parents, his two children, four sisters and four brothers, according to his obituary.
Staff writer Timia Cobb covers breaking news. Have a tip, a story idea, a question or a comment? You can reach her at tcobb@syracuse.com.
If you purchase a product or register for an account through a link on our site, we may receive compensation. By using this site, you consent to our User Agreement and agree that your clicks, interactions, and personal information may be collected, recorded, and/or stored by us and social media and other third-party partners in accordance with our Privacy Policy.
