Jonathan’s Story
“The hardest thing I've ever had to do in my life is to watch my son struggle with addiction, and then say goodbye to him suddenly, when he lost that battle. I try to take a lesson from him at this point to get through the rest of my life without him. Jonathan was an amazing young man. From the time he was a toddler, he had the strength and determination to accomplish anything he set his mind to. It was inspiring, and I hold on to that on the really tough days.
Throughout his childhood, Jonathan played soccer, baseball, football, and basketball. He found his true passion in music. After learning how to play the guitar and the trumpet and eventually the drums, Jonathan was in the high school concert band, the marching band, the wind ensemble, the jazz band, the local community Symphony Pro Musica, and several rock bands. He received the Louis Armstrong Jazz Award and the John Philip Sousa Band Award. He was in the National Honor Society and received a full scholarship to U-Mass Lowell for Music. He was smart, and he was funny, he had great friends and a close family and the potential to do great things.
Jonathan would still be here if love and determination were enough to conquer his addiction. My wish is that through projects like The Memorial Doors, we can help to bring awareness, education, and hope to those who still struggle with addiction and to the families and friends that love and support them.”
Kathy Leonard, Jonathan’s Mom
The first of the eight panels is complete
The Memorial Doors Project (MDP) started with a simple catalyst: mom Kathy Leonard remembering her son Jonathan’s passion for music and drumming: how when he rehearsed with his band in the basement of their house, the dishes in her china cabinet would rattle. She’d ask them to turn it down “just enough so the china wouldn’t rattle in the cabinet” and she’d smile as the volume slowly came back up to the same level it was before. “Now,” she says wistfully, “I would give anything to hear that music and hear the china rattling in the cabinet again.” This poignant and lovingly recalled snapshot of Jonathan’s life before the devastation of addiction changed it forever served as the inspiration for the first panel of the MDP.
Jonathan’s story
Kathy Leonard’s memory of her son Jonathan is the first to be included in The Memorial Doors Project. You can listen to Kathy’s beautifully spoken story of Jonathan by clicking on the audio link.
