MINNEAPOLIS — Friends and family are remembering Andre McNeal who founded the Doorstep Foundation, a nonprofit in the Twin Cities that helps mentor teenagers.
The Minnesota State Patrol says the 53-year-old died in a car crash on Interstate 94 Sunday night in north Minneapolis.
McNeal, who is widely known as Debonaire, was also an esteemed event promoter, comedian and radio DJ.
The crash has left a lot of people in shock, including his friend of 25 years — James C. Burroughs.
"We always call and check on each other and I’m not going to get that call anymore," said Burroughs. "That hurts."
McNeal moved to Minnesota in the mid-1990s. Debonaire was his stage name, but he made a name for himself cultivating R & B and jazz venues and restaurants, among other businesses. At one point, him and Burroughs even went into business together.
"In order to make sure people, who are people of color, want to stay here, want to have something to do and get engaged," said Burroughs about McNeal's drive to build relationships and cultivate spaces.
In 2015, he and his wife started the Doorstep Foundation that was featured as part of Communities that KARE two years ago. The Doorstep Foundation connects families to counseling services. Through mentorships, the children and teens learn positive interaction and social skills, along with coping skills, which McNeal said in an interview back that was important after George Floyd's death and the unrest that followed.
"It’s one thing to mentor somebody and make them how you want them to be like you, but Debonaire would give of himself to let them see how they could be their full selves and shape themselves into whatever they wanted to be," said Burroughs. "Some of the children looked to him as that father figure."
The McNeals hope then was to see the Doorstep Foundation grow in all school districts and counties in the Twin Cities. Now, the community is left grieving and wondering what's next.
"He was always giving to others and he never asked for anything in return, and that was the core of his heart and what made him special to a lot of people," said Burroughs.
The State Patrol says McNeal was speeding when he lost control and hit the sound wall and then the median about three miles south of I-694. The report also found he was not wearing a seatbelt. The investigation is still ongoing.
Watch more local news:
Watch the latest local news from the Twin Cities and across Minnesota in our YouTube playlist: