CARSON, Calif. – Jermaine Jones’ family has gone through a great deal over the last few years, but last week, they endured one of their toughest tests yet.
Jones and his family was rocked on Saturday when their youngest daughter Jadee-Mae was bitten by a dog. The dog’s bite left a large gash below her eye that required the 4-year-old to receive seven stitches.
“For me, I’m a dad who is really protective. I don’t like to let my kids do a lot. Seeing my youngest get a cut as she did, it was heartbreaking, but she was tough.
“She was asking how it looked and said that she wanted to see how it looked in the mirror. I told her that she looked good and I showed it to her. She asked me, “if I can still be a princess” and I told her that she’s daddy’s princess’ It’s tough, but it showed me how quickly things could happen with a kid.”
As his daughter laid on the operating table receiving her stitches, Jones comforted his little girl by assuring her that if she remained calm, she could join her father as he walked onto the field in last Sunday’s match against Minnesota United. Eager to join her dad, she not only kept calm but sang songs from Disney’s Moana to remain in good spirits.
Once she was recovering, Jones made a call to Galaxy team administrator Zack Murshedi who arranged for the midfielder to walk onto the field with his daughter before Los Angeles’ 3-0 win over Minnesota United last Sunday-- creating an experience that Jadee-Mae will never forget.
“For every kid, it’s special to walk in with the players and see the fireworks. She was in arms because she was a little bit scared, but at the end, she was happy and smiling,” Jones said. “She’s four so everything is big, and she had fun watching all the people. It was a nice experience for her, and it will be something that she can always look back on— standing on the field with her dad.”
A week removed from the incident, Jadee-Mae and her family remain confident as the young girl’s stitches were removed earlier this week. With no lasting damage to his young girl’s sight, Jones and his family can smile once again.
“She’s doing well,” Jones said. “All the doctors from the Galaxy checked it out, and everyone is happy with how it’s recovering. She’s healing well.”
