“It’s not how your born into this world, it’s what you make of it once you realize your potential.”
-Unknown
As a child I was fortunate to find solace and serenity through various activities that ignited my “passions”. Track, basketball, traveling, academics, and writing became my outlets, providing me with a sense of peace amid the negative influences that surrounded me. As I navigated through life, this inner tranquility gradually transformed into “peace”— a driving force that propelled me towards success and self-fulfillment. My “peace” then crystallized into having a “purpose”: to leave Compton, secure a college basketball scholarship then graduate, get drafted into the NBA, and explore the world. Through determination and manifestation, I miraculously achieved all these aspirations, which in turn became a source of “profit” for me. Looking back, I naturally taught myself the formula to a happy life: Passion + Peace + Purpose = Profit!
Name: Bobby Ray Jones Junior
Nickname: BJ
Born: January 9, 1984
Nationality: American
Height: 6 feet 7 inches (2.01m)
Weight: 224 (102kg)
Parents: Carol Jones (deceased) and Bobby Jones
Siblings: Kareem Jones (deceased), Nikisha Lewis, Jerrnel Jones
Children: Aaliyah Jones
High School: Dominguez High School (1999-2001), Long Beach Polytechnic High School (2002)
College: University of Washington ’06
Degree: B.A. in Written Expression of Multicultural Literature
Favorite Childhood NBA Team: LA Lakers
Favorite NFL Team: Kansas City Chiefs
Favorite MLB Team: Seattle Mariners
Favorite Life Moments: Graduating from college, getting drafted to the NBA and the birth of my daughter.
Favorite TV shows: The Real World, Martin, The Simpsons, South Park, Chappelle’s Show, Breaking Bad, Mad Men, The Walking Dead, Entourage, Ghostbusters, Game of Thrones, First Take, Duck Tales, Bobby’s World, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles.
Favorite Films: All the Matrix movies, American Beauty, Boyz N The Hood, Menace 2 Society, He Got Game, The Sandlot, Friday, Selma, Interview with the Vampire, Legends of the Fall, Inception,
Favorite Artists: Andre 3000, Outkast, Stevie Wonder, Bob Marley, Kendrick Lamar, DJ Quik, Aaliyah, Justin Timberlake, Fabolous, Hall & Oates, Snoop Dogg, Big Tymers, J. Cole, Nipsey Hussle, Alicia Keys, Ne-Yo, Babyface.
Favorite Athletes: Eddie Jones, Michael Jordan, Jackie Robinson, Ken Griffey Junior, Barry Sanders, Tiger Woods.
Nickname: BJ
Born: January 9, 1984
Nationality: American
Height: 6 feet 7 inches (2.01m)
Weight: 224 (102kg)
Parents: Carol Jones (deceased) and Bobby Jones
Siblings: Kareem Jones (deceased), Nikisha Lewis, Jerrnel Jones
Children: Aaliyah Jones
High School: Dominguez High School (1999-2001), Long Beach Polytechnic High School (2002)
College: University of Washington ’06
Degree: B.A. in Written Expression of Multicultural Literature
Favorite Childhood NBA Team: LA Lakers
Favorite NFL Team: Kansas City Chiefs
Favorite MLB Team: Seattle Mariners
Favorite Life Moments: Graduating from college, getting drafted to the NBA and the birth of my daughter.
Favorite TV shows: The Real World, Martin, The Simpsons, South Park, Chappelle’s Show, Breaking Bad, Mad Men, The Walking Dead, Entourage, Ghostbusters, Game of Thrones, First Take, Duck Tales, Bobby’s World, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles.
Favorite Films: All the Matrix movies, American Beauty, Boyz N The Hood, Menace 2 Society, He Got Game, The Sandlot, Friday, Selma, Interview with the Vampire, Legends of the Fall, Inception,
Favorite Artists: Andre 3000, Outkast, Stevie Wonder, Bob Marley, Kendrick Lamar, DJ Quik, Aaliyah, Justin Timberlake, Fabolous, Hall & Oates, Snoop Dogg, Big Tymers, J. Cole, Nipsey Hussle, Alicia Keys, Ne-Yo, Babyface.
Favorite Athletes: Eddie Jones, Michael Jordan, Jackie Robinson, Ken Griffey Junior, Barry Sanders, Tiger Woods.
NFL YET
The NFL Youth Education Town (also known as YET or YET Center), is a chain of educational and recreational centers in the United States. The YET concept grew out of the 1992 LA riots and the need that arose to correct the social inequities laid bare by that event. The NFL announced that it would build and finance a new after school center in Compton as a legacy of Super Bowl XXVII held in the L.A. area. Michael Jackson and Garth Brooks also helped finance the opening of the Compton center. Bobby was one of the 60 sixth graders selected to attend the charter school. The students would stay together until they graduated from 8th grade. They were supplied with small classrooms, a computer lab, amazing field trips, guest speakers and other academic resources. It helped Bobby immensely in his academics, passion for writing and molded him into giving back to the next generation.
Bobby is a board member at non-profit organization Compton Art Walk.
- Website: comptonartwalk.com
- Instagram: @comptonartwalk
Carol Ann Jones
Sunrise: December 20, 1956 – Sunset: March 27, 2017
Carol Ann Lewis was born on December 20, 1956 to the loving parents of James and Lucille (Johnson) Lewis. She was the third out of seven children and grew up in Los Angeles, California on 108th between Avalon and San Pedro. Carol attended 107th Street Elementary School, Gompers Junior High and Locke High School. After high school, Carol followed in her father’s footsteps and enlisted into the Armed Forces where she served two years in the army. Once she returned to the states, she reconnected and started dating Bobby Jones. They grew up eight blocks away from each other and also attended the same schools growing up. They fell in love and got married on August 16, 1982. They bought their one and only home in Compton, California and lived there for over 30 years. Carol was a dedicated worker with the US Postal service and was there for over 25 years until she retired.
She accepted Christ as her personal Lord and Savior early in her life and became a member of Holy Mount Calvary Missionary Baptist Church in October 1992. Carol loved cooking, trying new recipes, watching television shows, movies, reading novels, jigsaw puzzles, playing on her iPad, talking on the phone, attending church, driving, family outings/vacations and throwing backyard barbeques on various holidays.
In 2015, Carol found out she had stage four lung cancer and doctors gave her less than a year to live. She accepted her fate but continued to battle the disease the best she could and ended up living past those expectations. On Monday, March 27, 2017 Carol passed away inside of her home with her husband, daughter and son there in support. We truly believe this was the way she would have preferred to leave this earth; inside the house she made a home with the people she loved the most.
She leaves to cherish her memories, husband Bobby Ray Jones Sr.; daughter Nikisha Lewis; sons Jermel Jones and Bobby Ray Jones Jr.; nine grandchildren, Kyra Caldwell, Zaria Caldwell, Aaliyah Jones, Jeremiah Caldwell, Jasmine Jones, Aleiyah Jones, Jermel Jones Jr., Jordan Jones, Jaye Jones and a host of nieces, nephews and friends.