BY LEON B. CREWS
Sentinel Staff Writer

The story of former Tampa Bay Buccaneer running back, Warrick Dunn, captured the hearts of the entire nation.

In 1993 Dunn’s mother, Baton Rouge Police Corporal Betty Smothers, was shot to death during an ambush at a bank.

At a very young age, Dunn found himself raising his four siblings, sacrificing a personal life or time he would have otherwise spent with friends.
In Tampa, Javay Macelus faced a similar scenario.

In 2000, Macelus’s sister died after being diagnosed with pelvic cancer. She left behind seven children and her mother, Judy Macelus, took them into her home.

In 2009, Ms. Macelus passed away after suffering a heart attack, and once again the fate of seven children rested in the hands of the judicial system.

At the time of her death, Ms. Macelus was living in public housing (North Boulevard Homes), and one of her children, Javay, had been sent off to the Job Corps to get him away from the trouble that prevailed in the area at the time.

With just 37 days left, Javay had to return to Tampa from Kentucky to attend his mother’s funeral. After the funeral, once again the fate of seven nieces and nephews rested in the hands of the court.

“Different family members said they’d take some of them, but not all seven. I didn’t want them split up, so I petitioned the court to give me custody.”

After some counseling, a judge agreed to give custody to Javay, and at the age of 19, he found himself being responsible for seven people.

“A lot has happened over the past two years since I took up raising them. I can tell you it hasn’t been as hard as a lot of people think.”

Javay said the downside of accepting this responsibility is he has to get up early in the morning to make sure they are ready for school, and he constantly has to visit their schools for conferences and other events.

Javay said now he has 8 to look after, because his niece recently gave birth.[private]

“The time I spent in the Job Corps helped me mature enough to deal with this great responsibility. My family is always there to help whenever I need them, and that’s been a plus.”

Javay said now he has 8 to look after, because his niece recently gave birth.

“My oldest niece will be 19 in November, and the youngest child is 11. Discipline is not a problem, because we grew up in the same house together.

“I don’t have children of my own, but I feel I know what it’s like to have a family of my own.”

Javay said what he’s most happy about is that they’ve moved out of public housing and are now living in a nice house in West Tampa.

“I hated living in public housing, and I had to get out of that area. I didn’t like it when my mother was living there.

“When we moved it was a big surprise to the kids, because public housing was the only home they knew. Now, they have more room, and we have a yard. We really feel like a family now.”

Javay said he’s taken the test to get his GED, and he’ll try to apply for scholarships to attend Hillsborough Community College. He wants to become an elementary school teacher. [/private]