Jason Paul Padilla Jr., a hero's legacy

RIO RANCHO — Jason Padilla Jr. was a runner for RRHS track and cross-country. This would’ve been his senior year.

“He was an amazing big brother ... he loved his family. He was shy when you first met him, but you’d quickly see that he was silly and goofy. He could make you laugh, and he was incredibly intelligent,” Jason’s mother Theresa Padilla said.

Padilla’s parents recall that he was a natural leader, very mature for his age and a role model for his siblings, especially when his parents separated. He had a dog he loved, “Oreo,” who slept with him every night, an enormous heart, and a girlfriend whom he respected. His dad, Jason Padilla Sr., described him as a “deep thinker” who loved reading psychology and philosophy books.

On May 19, 2024, at the age of 16, Padilla was killed by a drunk driver.

“He was on his way to boxing at [Kicking Cats Sigalas] when it happened,” Jason Sr. said. “Just like another million families … we are mourning because of a driver being distracted; in this case, he was drunk, intoxicated.”

But because Padilla was an organ donor, three people’s lives were saved.

“A 17-year-old girl was able to leave the hospital because my son saved her,” Theresa said.

Padilla chose to be an organ donor, and his family received letters from some grateful people.

“We recently received a card from one of the people who received his left kidney. It was a young girl,” Jason Sr. said. “The fact that he chose to be an organ donor and save lives was just very heroic.”

According to Jason Sr., his son received the largest turnout for his “honor walk” at the hospital.

“He had the ‘honor walk,’ which was given to him because he chose to be an organ donor. They told me that they haven’t seen that much support for an individual. His Rio Rancho High School teachers, classmates, teammates all showed up wearing Rio Rancho gear,” Jason Sr. said.

An honor walk, hero walk or organ donor walk of life is a ceremonial event that honors organ donors and their families.

“He is an example for everyone to know what we lose, and what’s at stake, when we are driving and not paying attention,” Jason Sr. said.

Padilla’s parents spoke to RRHS students during the 2024 homecoming week to spread awareness about distracted driving.

“We just want to make sure that when you are in a vehicle, you understand that that is something that can take someone’s life, so whether it be drunk driving, reckless driving, distracted driving, any of those things,” Theresa said.

RRHS students signed a pledge to say “no” to distracted driving.

“Someone their age was a victim. It did happen. We aren’t untouchable and invincible. It could happen to anybody at any time,” Jason Sr. said. “Put your phone down when you drive ... when you get in your vehicle, make it a point to put it in the glove compartment or something like that where it is out of reach. That’d be a great way to honor him, remember him, and save a life.”

Jason Sr. now proudly wears many bracelets honoring his son and so that he can share his story.

“If everyone could just remember ... if you look at the statistics of this state, we rank number one as the worst drivers in the nation. We’ve known that. It’s been that way for years. He’s a — in my opinion — like a spearhead to hopefully open up this door of bringing awareness ... maybe another family won’t have to be in our shoes,” Jason Sr. said.

Padilla’s parents do plan on starting awareness campaigns and ways of honoring their son in the future.

“We are trying to do something in April or May so that teenagers can be aware of the donor program. My son was a donor. He chose that; that was on his driver’s license. I don’t feel like kids are aware of what that means,” Theresa said.

According to the Organ Donor website, a person is added to the transplant waiting list every eight minutes, and an organ donor can save up to eight lives.

“If we just stop for a minute and think of our loved ones before we get behind the wheel — think about someone you love the most, someone innocent and young like my son,” Jason Sr. said.

According to the New Mexico Department of Public Safety, alcohol is involved in 40% of all fatal traffic crashes in New Mexico, which makes alcohol-related traffic fatalities the single-largest factor in this state’s traffic deaths.