I Would first like to extend my gratitude to all the relatives, friends, and attendees who have come today to honor this great man, Jaylen Jerrold sneed, a person we have come to love for many years. The amount of people here today goes to show how many lives he touched in the short time that he was here with us. Hard work and determination characterized how strong this loving son, uncle, friend, and cousin he was.
He was born to Chanta Ellison and Jerrold Sneed in 2004 on a small island in South Carolina called Hilton Head. I was honored to be able to call him my best friend. When Jaylen was a kid he enjoyed playing sports and hanging out with friends. That's when his football career started. Growing up on Hilton head in such a small community everyone knew him as this smart, loving, and kind kid. When I was asked to write this I wanted to be able to get everyone's opinion on him so I asked around and the thing that stood out to me was when they would talk about his smile and how it could bring light into any and everyone's life when I heard that it would just light up my day because I would just be thinking about that big smile on his face it was truly beautiful. He always “lived his life as if nothing bad can ever happen”.(QQC#3) when living like that you truly get the full experience out of life.
In his teenage years, his dream was to “To play football at the highest level possible because he had worked half of his life and worked as hard as he could for at long as I can remember”.(QQC#5) the was something special about him, he was always determined to get done what had to be done. One of the most important was making sure “his mom never had to work again”.(QQC#4) even though this didn't pan out because he passed so young this showed how much he loved his mother. The love for his mother is what drove him to be the best at everything he did in life. He and that woman made such a great team, they were inseparable they always made sure the other had what they needed it was just such an amazing bond and relationship.
When he got to Notre Dame “he struggled with adversity he always found a way to overcome and get what he wanted to be done.”(QQC#2) He would always call me and tell me how hard it was. I would always tell him your  you can do anything you put your mind to. He had shown that throughout his life so I knew there was nothing that he couldn't do. Which made him so special. He would be always so calm during games. I would always remember going to his games and seeing the way “how they huddle before every play just to take a slight pause and think rather than just rushing to the line and starting a new play.”(QQC#1) Jaylen was such a humble man. On the field, he really showed everyone what he was about. He loved to show his talent and compete against the best players on the opposing teams. He was a man who always said “I am a man that is not giving up on life and always finding god”(QQC#6). Enough about college life. Let us talk about what really made him the man he was to this day and beyond.
Jaylen. NFL. Jaylen's lifetime goal was to be in the NFL. He made it and he made the most out of it. He loved it so much. He learned so much whether it was on or off the field. When Jaylen was on the field he was always doing the best he could. Whenever I called him, he was either at practice or when he was not at practice he was working on his skills with his personal trainer or by himself. The NFL was the best time of Jaylen’s life. 
When Jaylen was not at football, he was at home with his lovely family. He loved spending time with them. Jaylen had things most people did not have. Something that stood out to me was when he said “Tenderness i feel like is a gift to have because a lot of people dont have this trait.”(QQC#7). He cared so much about them. I remember when he would come randomly and surprise either his children or wife with such amazing gifts that would literally put them into tears. Outside of his family, he loved his mom, cousins, aunts, uncles. He would do anything for them. 
I am standing here talking about a man who really lived his life to the fullest. He is a man that will always be in our hearts and minds. He did so much for his family, his teammates, and anyone that needed him. He was a man that acted tough on the outside, but he was super soft on the inside. 







(“Why we need to slow down our lives” by Pico Lyer - Moreau FYE Week One)
(“Hesburgh” by Jerry Barca - Moreau FYE Week Two)
(“Meet the nun who wants you to remember that you will die” by Ruth Graham - Moreau FYE Week Three)
(“Navigating Your Career Journey - Moreau First Year Experience Course” by Undergraduate Career Services - Moreau FYE Week Four)
(“Personal talk with grandpa” by my grandpa - Moreau FYE Week Five)
(“The right way to be introspective” by Tasha Eurich- Moreau FYE Week Six)
(“Jurisdiction” by Tattoos on the Heart - Moreau FYE Week Seven)