Biography

Jesse Alexander Yaw | home

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Biography

Jesse’s Biography

It is very hard to do, summarize someone’s life,

especially when it is someone you love and were fortunate enough to have shared all of it, from the very first moment. Losing a child will make you replay their life in your mind and think of things you’d almost forgotten about. Every detail, every little memory becomes precious to a parent. Here is our best condensed version of Jesses’ life .

Jesse was born August 3, 1979 at 12:26am at Los Gatos Hospital. He weighed 5lbs. 4 1/2oz., he was 20 inches long. What an awesome and beautiful site he was.There were so many friends and relatives waiting at the hospital they were asked to leave ( a couple of times) They decided to wait in the parking lot (at the request of security).We all knew this was a special birth. Did I mention his Twin brother Nick, born on the same day, 5 minutes later, weighing 5lbs. 8oz., 19 inches long..yea!! It is impossible to write about Jesse and not include Nick. The hospital put wristbands on them "Baby A" and "Baby B", needless to say we kept them on for 3 weeks, just in case . It didn’t take long for mommy and daddy to be able to tell them apart, their cries, their looks their personalities. Nick had a big round head and Jesse had a blood curdling scream, could be heard a mile away. Jesse developed a hernia at 4 months and because he was quite anemic his iron level had to be increased before they would operate, at 11 months he had his operation and recovered just fine.

They were the first grandchildren on both sides and first twins in 2 generations on moms’ side. They were celebrities, they were showered with gifts on birthdays and Christmas. They captivated everyone with their humor and personalities.

We moved around quite a bit, Jesse lived in Campbell, South San Jose and Placerville. On March 31, 1984 his sister Marissa T was born. She was very special to him, he always looked after her and loved her very much. She was always on his mind.

Right after she was born we moved to Placerville where he and Nick started kindergarten. They loved living the country in our two-story house surrounded by huge pine trees and plenty of room to run around. We would go to the American River and hunt for "Gold Diamonds" as they called them. Jesse and Nick and the neighbor boy found some green paint in the shed one day and decided to paint the neighbors barn....he came to my door and said, " I should get mad but they did a pretty darn good job and I’ve been meanin’ to paint that barn for awhile now" The boys stood there silent trying their best not to act guilty as the man talked to me, but I guess they didn’t see the green paint on their pants, we all laughed.

We moved back to San Jose where he developed an interest in baseball. He always put everything he had into whatever he was doing or loved doing, Jesse never did like to settle for "average" or second-best, he strived for the best. His second year on Farm Giants he came in as a relief pitcher to get the last outs and win the championship game against our arch-rivals the Rangers! By the time he entered into the majors he had developed into a very good player. He continued to play during all of this he managed to keep his grades up. He also continued with playing the drums in band at Castro Middle School in San Jose. Jesse also started racing bmx bikes and enjoyed skateboarding.

He and Nick moved to Lodi after the 8th grade. I think this is

where he finally found home. The people there meant everything to him. That summer while visiting Uncle Phil he and Nick went to a Larry Bubb concert at Sequoia Heights Baptist Church in Manteca, this is where Jesse found GOD and was "saved". Uncle Phil always looked after Jesse and loved him like his own, I will always be grateful to Phil for this. Jesse looked up to his Uncle Phil, he just adored him, wanted to be just like Uncle Phil. Jesse met friends in Lodi that would become very important to him, these friendships were lasting friendships with good people (you all know who you are). Jesse continued to play ball till 19 years old playing 1 year of High School ball but didn’t care much for the politics. Jesse loved to play , on good days, his fastball was near 90 mph., his batting and shortstop abilities were equally good. He got a chance to try out for Minor ball at Zupo field for the Cincinnati Reds, this was his junior year of high school. Jesse was the only pitcher they talked to , they wanted him to play varsity his senior year , but Jesse got into a little trouble and didn’t make it through that year. He finished school at Lodi Adult School . The one book I can remember Jesse actually reading (besides Hot Rod Mags, and required school books) was Nolan Ryan’s Pitching Bible , cover to cover , over and over . Shortly after moving To Lodi Jesse met Tommy Aikin, Tommy had an electric guitar and somehow his mom through it in the garbage (accidentally I’m sure) , anyway Jesse acquired that guitar and as Jesse always did , he practiced and kept learning all coming so natural to him . He played both electric and the acoustic , the one his Uncle Rick gave him , he played beautifully . Jesse was not an extroverted person , he liked to go places and be with his friends but he always a "centered" person . His center being his home and family and close friends . Usually I should say 90% of the time his and Nicks friends were at our house , which is a good thing , knowing where they are and getting to know their friends who were always respectful and always hungry it seemed?? Jesse had a unique compassion for others , for life . He didn’t talk just to "talk", he was articulate and his words were meaningful and well thought out . He was extremely observant of those around him with a keen sense for seeing what others normally don’t in people the world we live in .When he stood up for what he believed in , he stood strong and wasn’t afraid to say it out loud and debate an issue with someone though never forcing his opinion on you , he grew very wise for such a young man , loving others for who they were and listening to them , really listening , you couldn’t help but listen to his every word and at least I know I’ve learned a lot from Jesse . All of what I learned has enhanced my life , made my life better .

He loved GOD, his family and life. He enjoyed cars, motorcycles and camping. Jesse spent his life with a deep concern for his fellow man . When he was taken from us on October 15 , 2000 , in a head-on car crash on Highway 12 in Lodi , California , a piece of us was suddenly and tragically gone .

T& L


	Jesse Alexander Yaw \| home Christmas \| Biography \| EASTER \| Stories \| Family \| Beliefs \| Contact \| Thanks \| Pictures \| More Pictures ______________________________________________________________________________________ Biography Jesse’s Biography It is very hard to do, summarize someone’s life, especially when it is someone you love and were fortunate enough to have shared all of it, from the very first moment. Losing a child will make you replay their life in your mind and think of things you’d almost forgotten about. Every detail, every little memory becomes precious to a parent. Here is our best condensed version of Jesses’ life . Jesse was born August 3, 1979 at 12:26am at Los Gatos Hospital. He weighed 5lbs. 4 1/2oz., he was 20 inches long. What an awesome and beautiful site he was.There were so many friends and relatives waiting at the hospital they were asked to leave ( a couple of times) They decided to wait in the parking lot (at the request of security).We all knew this was a special birth. Did I mention his Twin brother Nick, born on the same day, 5 minutes later, weighing 5lbs. 8oz., 19 inches long..yea!! It is impossible to write about Jesse and not include Nick. The hospital put wristbands on them "Baby A" and "Baby B", needless to say we kept them on for 3 weeks, just in case . It didn’t take long for mommy and daddy to be able to tell them apart, their cries, their looks their personalities. Nick had a big round head and Jesse had a blood curdling scream, could be heard a mile away. Jesse developed a hernia at 4 months and because he was quite anemic his iron level had to be increased before they would operate, at 11 months he had his operation and recovered just fine. They were the first grandchildren on both sides and first twins in 2 generations on moms’ side. They were celebrities, they were showered with gifts on birthdays and Christmas. They captivated everyone with their humor and personalities. We moved around quite a bit, Jesse lived in Campbell, South San Jose and Placerville. On March 31, 1984 his sister Marissa T was born. She was very special to him, he always looked after her and loved her very much. She was always on his mind. Right after she was born we moved to Placerville where he and Nick started kindergarten. They loved living the country in our two-story house surrounded by huge pine trees and plenty of room to run around. We would go to the American River and hunt for "Gold Diamonds" as they called them. Jesse and Nick and the neighbor boy found some green paint in the shed one day and decided to paint the neighbors barn....he came to my door and said, " I should get mad but they did a pretty darn good job and I’ve been meanin’ to paint that barn for awhile now" The boys stood there silent trying their best not to act guilty as the man talked to me, but I guess they didn’t see the green paint on their pants, we all laughed. We moved back to San Jose where he developed an interest in baseball. He always put everything he had into whatever he was doing or loved doing, Jesse never did like to settle for "average" or second-best, he strived for the best. His second year on Farm Giants he came in as a relief pitcher to get the last outs and win the championship game against our arch-rivals the Rangers! By the time he entered into the majors he had developed into a very good player. He continued to play during all of this he managed to keep his grades up. He also continued with playing the drums in band at Castro Middle School in San Jose. Jesse also started racing bmx bikes and enjoyed skateboarding. He and Nick moved to Lodi after the 8th grade. I think this is where he finally found home. The people there meant everything to him. That summer while visiting Uncle Phil he and Nick went to a Larry Bubb concert at Sequoia Heights Baptist Church in Manteca, this is where Jesse found GOD and was "saved". Uncle Phil always looked after Jesse and loved him like his own, I will always be grateful to Phil for this. Jesse looked up to his Uncle Phil, he just adored him, wanted to be just like Uncle Phil. Jesse met friends in Lodi that would become very important to him, these friendships were lasting friendships with good people (you all know who you are). Jesse continued to play ball till 19 years old playing 1 year of High School ball but didn’t care much for the politics. Jesse loved to play , on good days, his fastball was near 90 mph., his batting and shortstop abilities were equally good. He got a chance to try out for Minor ball at Zupo field for the Cincinnati Reds, this was his junior year of high school. Jesse was the only pitcher they talked to , they wanted him to play varsity his senior year , but Jesse got into a little trouble and didn’t make it through that year. He finished school at Lodi Adult School . The one book I can remember Jesse actually reading (besides Hot Rod Mags, and required school books) was Nolan Ryan’s Pitching Bible , cover to cover , over and over . Shortly after moving To Lodi Jesse met Tommy Aikin, Tommy had an electric guitar and somehow his mom through it in the garbage (accidentally I’m sure) , anyway Jesse acquired that guitar and as Jesse always did , he practiced and kept learning all coming so natural to him . He played both electric and the acoustic , the one his Uncle Rick gave him , he played beautifully . Jesse was not an extroverted person , he liked to go places and be with his friends but he always a "centered" person . His center being his home and family and close friends . Usually I should say 90% of the time his and Nicks friends were at our house , which is a good thing , knowing where they are and getting to know their friends who were always respectful and always hungry it seemed?? Jesse had a unique compassion for others , for life . He didn’t talk just to "talk", he was articulate and his words were meaningful and well thought out . He was extremely observant of those around him with a keen sense for seeing what others normally don’t in people the world we live in .When he stood up for what he believed in , he stood strong and wasn’t afraid to say it out loud and debate an issue with someone though never forcing his opinion on you , he grew very wise for such a young man , loving others for who they were and listening to them , really listening , you couldn’t help but listen to his every word and at least I know I’ve learned a lot from Jesse . All of what I learned has enhanced my life , made my life better . He loved GOD, his family and life. He enjoyed cars, motorcycles and camping. Jesse spent his life with a deep concern for his fellow man . When he was taken from us on October 15 , 2000 , in a head-on car crash on Highway 12 in Lodi , California , a piece of us was suddenly and tragically gone . T& L