Being the oldest sibling in her household, Tanya Downer did everything in her might to ensure her baby brother, Brandon Hendricks, was protected. Like many times before, Downer ensured that Hendricks was both safe and doing okay before she left town on vacation in late June 2020. In need of some rest and relaxation following the stress and aggravation of the recent lockdown, she was looking forward to a change of scenery.

As soon as it was safe to fly again, Downer and her family traveled to Puerto Rico, her favorite holiday destination. The time spent in the Caribbean should have brought her and her family the peace and tranquility they were seeking. However, after just two days, Downer’s vacation was short lived. On June 29, at around 3:00 a.m., she woke to the sound of her cellphone, and news that would permanently change her life.

Tragically, Hendricks lost his life just one week before his 18th birthday. On June 28, while attending a friend’s birthday cookout on Davidson Avenue in the Morris Heights section of the Bronx, he was caught in crossfire during which a hail of bullets reigned down from an assailant’s firearm. Hendricks was hit in the neck by a bullet that law enforcement officials are almost certain was meant for someone else. He died in the early hours of June 29.

Downer recalled the fateful phone call she received in her hotel room. “I was told to call my mom, and my heart immediately dropped,” she said. “I knew that something had happened to my brother. His [Brandon’s] uncle broke the news to me, and I was screaming ‘No!’ for about an hour. I cried non-stop.”

Hendricks was born in the Bronxville section of Westchester County. He was a success story in his South Bronx neighborhood, triumphing over the pitfalls to which many other adolescents fall prey. The highly decorated student and athlete had just graduated from James Monroe High School days before his untimely passing. He was also the point guard and captain of the James Monroe Eagles basketball team.

Downer praised her brother’s many attributes. “Brandon, as a child, was perfect,” Downer said. “He was my best friend. He was always into sports and making my mother proud. He was never the type to be rude or disrespectful. He was always calm and loved to smile. We raised him to not play with toy guns. Water guns and Nerf guns were not allowed in our house.”

Downer said Hendricks had dreams of graduating college, majoring in Sports Management and playing basketball professionally, and had received multiple offers to attend colleges and universities throughout the United States. She said he had been close to committing to a place at St. John’s University in the fall and was also slated to join the Red Storm basketball team as a walk on.

“It is extremely hard,” Downer said of the grieving process. “We are a very close and loving family. We are all devastated and heartbroken.” She said her mother, Eve Hendricks, has shown a lot of strength and courage throughout the ordeal, and is coping with the loss of her youngest child as best she can.

She offers her mom as much comfort and solace as possible but said while she is a strong and secure matriarch for the family, there are moments when she literally needs a shoulder to cry on. “She can’t sleep and can’t eat,” Downer said. “My mom just picks at food.”

On July 7, in honor of Hendricks’ 18th birthday, a rally denouncing gun violence was held on East 157th Street and Courtlandt Avenue, not too far from the housing development in which he was raised.

“I want to get out of this what my brother always wanted,” Downer said. “I want people, especially the young generation to do good and prosper. I want mothers to be kinder to their sons. I want fathers to be there for their children. The world doesn’t need any more broken people.”

Downer said that Hendricks was always a good listener and always spoke about being an inspiration to kids from when he was a very young child. “He never complained about having to go to church. He participated and knew who God was,” she added.

The police arrested Najhim Luke, 22, on July 6 in relation to the case. Knowing that a suspect has been apprehended has provided Downer and her mother with some measure of relief. “It’s a little weight off of our shoulders, although it doesn’t bring my brother back,” Downer said. “At least I know that this low-life is off the streets and can’t hurt another family the way he hurt my family.”

Finding a silver lining following her brother’s tragic murder will be difficult for Downer. However, she is confident that with faith and time, something positive may transpire to assure her that her little brother didn’t die in vain. “My brother was my world before I had my daughter,” she said. “Brandon both loved and adored her. They both shared my heart.”

As part of her grieving process, Downer finds it therapeutic to reminisce about the good old times she shared with her brother. “My favorite memory of Brandon was teaching him to ride his bike without the training wheels when he was about five or six years-old,” she said. “He was so scared, but he trusted me, and was so happy once he got the hang of it. We spent the entire day at the park, and he never gave up.”

With gun violence spiking across the city, Hendricks has become one of the latest in a growing number of gunshot victims. What will his legacy be? How will the beloved star, on and off the court, be remembered? Downer is clear on this point.

“His legacy will be remembered by getting our youth off the streets, being active in sports and schools again, getting guns off the streets, and mentoring the next generations to come so that they can be great,” she said.