NewsLocal NewsCuyahoga County

Actions

21-year-old homicide victim remembered at Salvation Army Temple Corps

Posted at 1:41 PM, Dec 03, 2017
and last updated 2017-12-03 13:42:47-05

On a normal Sunday morning 21-year-old Jared Plesec would be one of the first people to show up at the Salvation Army Temple Corps, ready to pray and interact with children. 

But this Sunday morning, he wasn’t there and the kids inside were broken.

"He wanted to see these kids succeed in life and he just cared for them so much. That’s what Jared was," said Major Daniel Alverio with the Salvation Army.

Maj. Alverio said Plesec was a cornerstone in the Salvation Army community.

“Everybody that came into the building knew Jared and they shook his hand, different handshakes all the time," he said. 

Plesec was shot and killed Saturday morning at the Euclid Beach Villa apartments.

Police say the man behind the trigger was 27-year-old William Jones - who went on a carjacking spree after killing Plesec. Others were injured along the way. 

While those people are recovering, kids and adults at the Salvation Army Temple Crops are trying to cope with the loss.

“He took a wonderful person out of this world,” Hercules Shepherd, member of the Salvation Army Temple Crops, said. 

Plesec worked with children at the temple for years - dedicating his entire life to helping others. 

“Look at the kids’ faces - they’re broken. These kids knew this was someone that wouldn't walk away from them," Maj. Alverio said. 

While hugs were shared and tears were shed, the reminder of Plesec’s spirit was felt far and wide.

“He was an A-1 kid,” Shepherd said. 

Maj. Alverio had these words for Plesec’s killer:

“Jared loved everybody. Jared wanted nothing more than to see you saved, to see you knowing the Lord and to recognize that there’s better things in this life than the world tells us there is," he said. 

Jones is currently behind bars. So far police haven’t said what charges he’ll face for the crime spree.