Tragedy of Jodie
A-levels, Scouts and wisdom beyond her years — and in the words of one friend...
WHAT kind of girl was Jodie Chesney? One photograph in particular answers that question. It was posted on her Instagram account on the second Sunday of November last year; Remembrance Sunday, in other words.
Jodie is standing on the steps of 10 Downing Street in her Scouts’ uniform – with a poppy pinned to her khaki shirt.
She was part of a small group selected to represent the movement at events to commemorate the centenary of the Armistice.
‘I’m basically famous now,’ she wrote under the picture. ‘This was such a good opportunity and so much fun.’
On the same day, Jodie was filmed during the BBC’s broadcast of the Royal British Legion Festival of Remembrance at the Royal Albert Hall and can be seen lining the walkway of the Chelsea Pensioners as they came on stage.
She had been a Ranger in the Girls Guides before progressing to become an Explorer Scout, a section of the Scouts for 14 to 18-year- olds, which some youngsters might not consider to be ‘cool’ these days. Jodie was ‘cool.’ But she was also – to quote someone who knew her – ‘the nicest, loveliest, kindest person you could meet with everything to look forward to in life.’
The fact you are now reading about her in the past tense is not just a tragedy but a scandal that shames our country,
On Friday, Jodie was stabbed to death as she sat on park bench with her boyfriend Eddie Coyle, 18, in the east London suburb of Harold Hill in Romford. She was just 17; the latest casualty of the knife crime epidemic sweeping ‘ Wild West Britain.’
Last night, Scotland Yard provided new and disturbing details about the murder, but provided no clues as to the potential motive.
Jodie was with a group of five other teenagers, playing music and socialising in the park. They said they noticed ‘ two males’ enter the park – without interacting with Jodie or her party. No words were exchanged.
They left at about 9pm but returned around 30 minutes later, walking straight towards them, where one of the suspects, described as black and in his late teens, stabbed Jodie once in the back before running off. Some reports say the assailants wore balaclavas.
Jodie’s heartbroken boyfriend screamed for help, stroking and kissing her face as she lay bleeding to death.
Among floral tributes at the scene was one which read: ‘Jodie, we love you. You are so amazing. We will always remember you.’ Reports over the weekend described her as an ‘innocent’ victim which has become a cliche to describe almost everyone who loses their life in such terrible circumstances; maybe so; but surely no one could have been more innocent than Jodie.
She was from a loving family; she was studying for her A-levels; she loved photography; she had a Yorkshire terrier called Woody, who is pictured with her on her social media, and, of course, she was a Scout – ‘ a Scout has self-respect and respect for others’, all those who join the organisation are told.
No one epitomised that ideal more than Jodie Chesney, which is why she was chosen for such an important role in the Remembrance Sunday celebrations.
‘ She had blossomed into an amazing young woman,’ said Scout leader Anna Skipworth. ‘ She always had a smile on her face supporting the younger members where she could. She was funny, intelligent and a joy to work with. We are devastated.’
Jodie lived in Dagenham – not far from the scene of this utterly senseless crime – with her father Peter, stepmum Joanne, and 21year-old sister Lucy.
She was studying psychology and sociology at Havering Sixth Form College where her boyfriend Eddie Coyle was also a student. Images on her social media pages show a typical teenager. We see her enjoying a day out with her friends at Thorpe Park in Surrey, and, with her family, on a trip to Clacton Pier and on holiday in Turkey, among many other happy occasions.
Cruelly, it was her father’s 39th birthday on the day she died. Jodie had posted a picture of the two of them together. ‘Happy birthday dad,’ she wrote, accompanied by a red love heart. She and her sister Lucy were bridesmaids when he remarried in 2012. It is clear that Jodie was extremely close to her stepmother, who works in the
‘Stabbed in the back as she sat on a park bench’
accounts department of a law firm. ‘Your mum isn’t the person that gave birth to you or is blood related,’ she wrote under one wedding snap of the bride cuddling her. ‘Your mum is the person you grew up with ... the person that took care of you and listened to your problems.’
Such wise and insightful words, you might think, from a girl, aged around ten at the time, and they hinted at the kind of young woman Jodie would become; indeed had become.
Jodie was recently presented with a Duke of Edinburgh Silver award after a trek across the Isle of Wight.
In 2016, she visited Buckingham Palace with fellow Girl Guides where they met TV presenter Philip Schofield.
But the highlight of her Scouting career was the concert at the Royal Albert Hall, hosted by the BBC’s Huw Edwards, which was attended by the Queen and Prime Minister Theresa May and featured performances by Tom Jones and Sheridan Smith.
How proud Jodie’s family must have been that she was there as well. Yesterday Jodie’s grandmother spoke for the rest of us when she wrote on Facebook: ‘How have we come to this point where kids can’t have a walk in the park without suffering an unprovoked attack?
‘If anyone knows anything, please contact the police with information. We don’t want anyone else to go though what our family is going through right now.
‘This has to stop, there are too many young people having their lives cut short by needless violence.’