Yvonne Cynthia Martin, 56, City Councilman's mother
She was stylish and artistic, and devoted to her church.
IT WAS A WEEK of joy and pain for City Councilman Kenyatta Johnson.
On Saturday, Sept. 27, his wife, Dawn, gave birth to their first child, Isaiah Mandela Johnson. On Thursday, his mother died.
"We count as a blessing that my mother had the opportunity to meet her grandson before she died," Johnson said.
His mother, Yvonne Cynthia Martin, a stylish and artistic woman, a proud ambassador and a cheerleader for her politician son, died suddenly at age 56. She lived in South Philadelphia.
"She was a great lady, a strong and caring woman who was a source of inspiration in my life," said Johnson, a former state legislator and a City Council member from the 2nd District since 2012.
Yvonne was called "Badia" by friends and family, a nickname the source of which is as mysterious as she was realistic.
In fact, one of Yvonne's major characteristics was her inability to suffer fools lightly. She preferred to be with people who were as real and up front as she was.
One of her favorite sayings was, "I am real!"
"She was someone who kept it real and would very quickly let you know what she was thinking and/or feeling that was truly 'Badia' style," her family said in a tribute.
"Yvonne had a genuine outgoing attitude, and her spirit was both captivating and infectious, like her smile," her family said.
She was born in Philadelphia, the younger of the two children of Thomas Johnson and Bernice Johnson Hughes. She attended South Philadelphia High School and held jobs at the Quartermaster Corps and the Blasius Chocolate Factory.
She married Ronald Martin on July 4, 1984, and devoted herself to being a homemaker. Her home on Emily Street near 20th was beautifully decorated and filled with music, mostly gospel and oldies.
She would be vacuuming the rugs while listening to the music played by disc jockey Joe "Butterball" Tamburro, and under the watchful eye of her dog, Gucci.
Yvonne also was a devotee of fashion and wouldn't leave the house without being stylishly turned out.
"Her greatest source of pride was 'her boy,' Kenyatta Johnson," her family said. "Yvonne was a self-proclaimed ambassador and cheerleader, sharing the accomplishments of her son near and far across the city, not just in South Philadelphia."
Yvonne had a deep religious faith and was a proud member of the Yesha Ministries Worship Center. Another of her famous sayings was, "God's got me!"
Yvonne was a volunteer at Dixon House, which offers a variety of services to adults and children in the Point Breeze neighborhood.
Lacking from her life, she made clear to family and friends, was a grandchild. One can imagine her joy when she beheld her first and only grandson, Isaiah, even though he was only days old when she died.
She is survived by her husband, son and mother. She was predeceased by another son, Isaiah Stefan Martin, who died in infancy; her father; and her older sister, Darlene Johnson Maverick.
Services: 11 a.m. tomorrow at Yesha Ministries Worship Center, 23rd Street and Snyder Avenue. Friends may call at 9 a.m. Burial will be in Fernwood Cemetery.