Jones preparing for next trip

Apr. 11—MIDLAND For Jaythan Jones, nothing has come easy for him and because of that, he hasn't taken any of his accomplishments for granted.

The five-foot-five basketball guard who currently attends Midland Christian has been through quite a lot, whether it's from not being able to play on the court for a year or having to pull extra jobs outside of the classroom to help his family out or going through life at Buckner Family Pathways.

However, he knows it's been all worth it as he'll soon begin the next stage of his life when he plays at the collegiate level next school year.

Jones recently made it official when he signed his letter of intent to play at Dallas Christian a few weeks ago.

"It meant a lot to me because I came from not having anything and worked my way up to the top to get to this point in my life where I can play at the next level," Jones said.

In 2015 Jones, who is now 19, along with his younger brother Jamere Jones, 16, and mother Sherenda Lee were all homeless following a divorce.

That led them to the Buckner Family Pathways in Midland.

Buckner Family Pathways provides single-parent families the opportunity to live in a safe environment while completing their educational or vocational goals and learn the skills needed to be self-sufficient.

"The reason we were there was because I had lost everything from a divorce so we were able to go to Buckner and that program helped me as a mother get back on my feet and also continue my education while living there at Buckner with my sons."

Designed to help single parents in a crisis, the Family Pathways helps them overcome barriers that prevent self sufficiency.

"We provide services like affordable housing, healthcare, counseling and money management training," Patricia Acosta, executive director of the Buckner Family Pathways in Midland said. "We want to help them become self-sufficient. It's important because it keeps families together by providing a system of support to strengthen families during a crisis."

It wasn't easy, as Lee said they went from a four-bedroom home to a two-bedroom duplex where the boys had to share a room.

"It was small," Lee said. "It really taught us to be humble and be thankful that we had a roof over our heads. We were thankful that there's a program that helps women such as myself get back on their feet."

Lee attended Midland College while her boys continued with their education.

On school nights, she would work on her homework while Jaythan and Jamere did likewise for their classes.

"We were always together in that duplex," Lee said. "It was an experience that if I had to do it again, I would because it's a good program and really taught my children to help the little kids there and it was a good experience for them as well."

The family was a part of the Buckner Family Pathways from 2015-2016.

While Jaythan said it was a struggle during that time, he was also thankful for what the program did for all of them including their mother.

"It got us through some good times and some bad times," Jones said. "It helped us out a lot when my mom was struggling to get back on her feet. I really loved the program that they had for us because they made sure that they helped us no matter what. Buckner is what made us today."

Acosta said the Jones family is one example of how Family Pathways can help single parents and future generations break the cycle of poverty.

"It's awesome how the program has helped her and her children and has created a brighter future for them," Acosta said. "It's one of those stories that we love and just an example of why the pathways is needed. We're proud of her and her son."

But Jones has still endured a roller coaster during his high school years.

Originally a student at Midland Lee, he transferred to Midland Christian.

Because he reclassified at Midland Christian, Jones is graduating a year later than originally scheduled.

"He came from a public school (Lee) when he was a junior," Lee said. "When I put him at Midland Christian, he was struggling at Lee and didn't have enough credits. In order for him to catch up with his credits, he had to reclassify as a junior."

Because he had exceeded his eligibility, Jones wasn't eligible to play sports this school year.

He was still allowed to attend practices and be at the games, supporting his teammates on the floor.

While not getting to play was tough, he said he couldn't look at it like that.

"I had to keep working out and stay in shape," Jones said. "Being with the team and going out and going to games and sitting on the bench with them and cheering them on, I had to encourage them to be better and to play my role even though I wasn't in the game."

In 2019-20, Jones was a part of a team that went on a run to the TAPPS semifinal and posted a 31-5 overall record before losing 65-57 to Plano John Paul II.

While not playing this year, he made sure to help out as much as he could.

"I knew what to expect," Jones said. "We knew what the other teams were running. It just helps them a lot because we were a young team this year. Most of our teammates this year didn't play varsity and didn't know that level yet. So me being able to encourage them and tell them what to do and help them better their game was a good thing."

Then there's the matter of money.

Because finances are tight with his family, Jones works two jobs at Midland Park Mall.

His main job is at GNC where he says he'll sometimes get about 30 hours during the week. He also works at Kids Foot Locker where he works about 10 hours.

"Really, it's a pretty spread out schedule, unless they need me to work the same day because my main job is GNC," Jones said. "That comes first. If they need me after one shift, I'll go to the next."

It begs the question of how he fits all of that and school work into his schedule.

"That's a good question," Jones said. "Nobody's asked me that. I just set my mind to it. I know that I have to provide for my mom and my brother and me as well. Sometimes I'll bring my schoolwork to work because I know that I won't have much time to do it at home."

As he gets ready to graduate and go to Dallas Christian, he's happy that he's not too terribly far from home.

"It feels good to be close to home, even though I'm like four or five hours away, it still feels good because I can still come home whenever I want and to see my family," Jones said. "Even if I can't get on the road, I still have a lot of family in Dallas so I know that they'll look out for me."

He's grateful for the opportunity that his family has been able to provide him.

"One thing that we never forget is to be there for each other," Jones said. "My mom, she made sure I got this college opportunity to play basketball. She made sure she did everything she could to help me get to where I am today. My grandma also helped me too. Like going to my games or going to AAU games or trips out of town."

As far as what he's been through, he knows just to keep moving forward and to not look back too much.

"My biggest reflection on this is now I can't look back on what happened because all the struggles that happened, everything that my family and I went through, it made me who I am today," Jones said. "I just need to move forward and complete the next chapter of my life."