On the morning of May 20, 2025, a fire ripped through a home at 6204 South Paulina Street in West Englewood and took four lives that this city will never get back. The call to action came straight from the community and it is being heard.
A Community Call To Action
Larry Hoover Jr., son of infamous Chicago gang leader Larry Hoover, took to Instagram to call on the Chicago community to come together for the victims of this tragedy. His message was direct and from the heart can we get Chicago to put something on the fence at 62nd and Paulina in memory of the four lives lost? Let’s show their families love and make sure these victims are never forgotten. When a voice rooted in the streets of Chicago speaks up for the innocent, the city listens. This is one of those moments.
Who They Were
The victims have been identified as Reginald Wilson, his wife Lisa Brown, and two of Brown’s foster children 15 year old Ja’Quan Rattler and his 8 year old sister, Royalty Rattler.
Lisa Brown was described by her son Antonio as an angel who loved being a foster mother. “My momma did a lot. She was the matriarch of our family and the backbone,” he said. “She put her heart and soul into fostering.”
Lisa’s cousin Tamika Smith called her a good-hearted mother and parent mentor at a local school. “Lisa was a person whose smile would brighten up a whole room,” Smith said. “They took my cousin’s life for nothing, and all she tried to do was be a good parent to her foster children.”
Royalty was eight years old. Her birthday was June 1st. She never made it. Her best friend, 10 year old Iyanna Flowers, said the two had a whole future planned college, visiting each other, going to the park. Gone too soon does not begin to cover it.
The Fire
The Chicago Fire Department responded at approximately 2:05 a.m. after multiple 911 calls reported heavy smoke and flames pouring from the multi-family home. Firefighters encountered intense heat and thick smoke upon arrival, pulling multiple occupants from upper story windows amid collapsing floors and dangerous conditions.
Alderman Ray Lopez confirmed the fire started on the outside of the house. “This house had a family in it, this house had children in it, and yet this house was set on fire,” he said. “You don’t endanger the lives of innocent children sleeping at midnight simply because you’re pissed off at the world.”
Autopsies confirmed all four victims died from burns and carbon monoxide poisoning. The Cook County Medical Examiner’s Office ruled all four deaths homicides. Chicago police are investigating this as arson. No arrests have been made.
This Block Has Seen Pain Before
This is not the first time fire has taken lives on the South Side of Chicago. Years earlier, just blocks away in West Englewood on South Paulina, two toddlers 2 year old Javaris Meakens and his 3 year old sister Jariyah were killed in an apartment fire. The neighborhood has absorbed loss after loss and kept standing. But every life taken leaves a mark that does not fade.
West Englewood is a community with deep roots. The neighborhood became part of Chicago in 1889 and grew significantly in the years following the Great Chicago Fire of 1871. For over a century, families have built their lives here, raised children here, and loved each other here. Reginald and Lisa were that legacy in action a couple who opened their home to children who needed a safe place to land.
What You Can Do
Larry Hoover Jr. made the ask and now it is Chicago’s turn to show up. Head to 62nd and Paulina. Put something on that fence. Flowers, a photo, a candle, a ribbon. Let this family and this block know that Chicago saw them and Chicago will not forget them.
Alderman Lopez is also asking anyone in the area to check their door cam footage between midnight and 1 a.m. on May 20 and come forward with any information. Anyone hoping to support the family financially can reach out to his 15th Ward office directly.
Reginald. Lisa. Ja’Quan. Royalty. 🕊️🙏🏾
Say their names. Keep their memory alive.
