At just 10 years old, London Woodard radiated a gentle worldliness his family believed exceeded that of any other kid.
The boy, who died in a Washington Heights house fire Monday morning, thrived as a fifth-grade honor roll student at LEARN Charter Schools’ Hunter Perkins campus and as a two-time MVP forward on his basketball team. He always held doors open for women and told his mother she “looked beautiful like a Barbie” each time she returned from the hair salon.
“He was a vibrant ray of sunshine at all times,” his father, Zesmond Woodard, said.
A police report obtained by the Chicago Tribune preliminarily labeled the fatal fire as electrical in nature. Morgan Park (22nd) District police responded to the fire, at 10540 S. Green St., just before 3:30 a.m. Monday, per police records.
As they continue to reflect on their son’s life and legacy, London’s parents, Zesmond Woodard and Princess Harris, recalled a multitude of traits that made him who he was. He loved butterflies, science and video games. He relished the opportunity to see his favorite NFL player, Justin Jefferson, score a touchdown against the Bears last year.
What they will remember most, though, is the way he treated his brother, Mikah Glass, who was also hospitalized by the fire. Glass, who is 18 and living with nonambulatory cerebral palsy, requires care from both his family and at-home nurse.
According to his parents, London acted as his brother’s “little stand-in caretaker,” frequently adjusting his head and filling his gastrostomy tube with milk without being asked. They remember fondly the way the brothers celebrated life together.
Each time London won a basketball trophy or earned an award at school he always did the same thing: he came home, found his brother and delivered it to him.
“He says that he plays for him and that he does everything that (Glass) can’t do,” Zesmond Woodard said.
From the moment he entered the world, Harris said her youngest son put others’ needs before his own. She swears he even reached for the scissors to help his father cut the umbilical cord when he was born.
Amid what he described as “an inferno” in his home Monday morning, Zesmond Woodard said he could hear his son screaming “Mommy” for help. He remained in the house crawling on the floor and searching for his sons until firefighters arrived and pulled him outside.
Five minutes later, the first responders rescued Glass, but his brother was located in the living room, where they believe the fire originated.
“If I would’ve found London, I would have curled up next to him,” Zesmond Woodard said. “It never would’ve been me leaving him.”
The family is arranging end-of-life services for their son, which they said will be open to the public. They are continuing to pray for Glass, who they said was stable, but still on a ventilator as of Tuesday afternoon.
Horrified by the fire and overwhelmed with grief, his parents feel comforted by the outpouring of support they have received in the immediate aftermath of London Woodard’s death.
“He was so loved,” Harris said. “He had so much love left to give.”
