Family and friends remember the life of a Omaha father of four and advocate for change

An Omaha family is looking to prevent future gun violence as they honor a slain father of four. Thursday night, family and friends gathered at a prayer walk in honor of Lashawn Lessley Jr.

Read the full article on KETV 7

‘My son didn’t deserve this’: Family in Omaha calls for change after a father of four was shot and killed

OMAHA, Neb. —

An Omaha family is looking to prevent future gun violence as they honor a slain father of four. Thursday night, family and friends gathered at a prayer walk in honor of Lashawn Lessley Jr.

Police say Lessley was shot and killed Sunday at his home.

The prayer walk was filled with memories, laughter, and tears from friends and family of Lessley. Everyone at the prayer walk said the same thing: Lessley did not deserve this fate.

“He was so loving, so caring. He literally gave you the shirt off his back,” Deja Jefferson, Lessley’s cousin, said.

Lessley’s family said he was sitting on the couch on Sunday when someone shot him through the window.

“My son didn’t deserve this from nobody,” said Lessley’s father, who asked to remain anonymous.

Now his family is calling for change.

“This ain’t GTA. None of that. This is real life. So we can’t act like we got to get another life because we. We’re not. This is it. So do your due diligence and talk it out. Be a man and talk it out,” Lessley’s father said.

His father said this is a fate that his son never deserved.

“He was just an awesome guy all the way around. I can’t see; I can’t even think of nothing bad to say about him. And I’m just being honest with you. He had no enemies except for. So whoever did this, obviously. But my son didn’t make enemies. That’s not how I raised him to be,” Lessley’s father said.

His father’s message to everyone is to not let strong emotions get the best of you.

“You know, you just got to be able to mind your business and leave others alone. Because if you was minding your business, you wouldn’t have to worry about somebody else’s business,” Lessley’s father said.

Now all his family and friends have left are memories.

“He kept our spirits up and inspired us to keep going. He always told us that we would be great in the future. And he always was around us to make us laugh and feel better,” Labree Lessley, Lessley’s cousin, said.

His family said he was a mentor to all the kids in their family. One of his cousins said he lit up every room he walked into.

Make sure you can always see the latest news, weather, sports and more from KETV NewsWatch 7 on Google search.