Johnathan Mayo, right, with his wife, Nicole, and daughters, Brooke and Danielle (Photo courtesy Johnathan Mayo)
Anyone who is familiar with Johnathan Mayo can safely say the man knows how to deliver — and that includes a baby.
Several years ago, the Richmond entrepreneur and Lester Johnson, his friend since middle school, launched Mama J’s, a popular soul-food restaurant in Jackson Ward. Mayo and Johnson also create fundraising events for nonprofit and community organizations through their firm, Avail.
More recently, Avail and pro-football-player-turned-sports-analyst Michael Robinson inked a deal to turn a former eastern Henrico County library into a high-tech community learning center for youth and adults. Add to the mix Avail’s new Serving Up Change, an online platform designed to help restaurants manage charitable requests.
While proud of those achievements, Mayo admits that none match his role in the unexpected delivery of his second daughter, around 4:20 a.m. on March 26.
Throughout the day before, Mayo’s very pregnant wife, Nicole, experienced what she assumed were Braxton Hicks contractions (false labor). She called her doula, who assured her that she wasn’t in labor. The Mayos went about their day, which included playtime with 2-year-old daughter Brooke, lunch and a “date-night” movie.
During the movie, ironically titled “Get Out,” Nicole began timing contractions. She mentioned none of this to her husband. Once home from the theater, Mayo took to his laptop while his wife retreated to their bedroom. At some point, he went upstairs to check on her before going into a nearby room, where he dozed off.
Hours later, Mayo was awakened by Nicole yelling his name. He found Nicole in the bathroom and immediately called her parents to stay with Brooke while the couple went to the hospital.
As he tried to help Nicole up from the commode, they both felt something moving, which turned out to be their baby’s head, and immediately called 911.
But baby Mayo proved faster than any emergency squad unit. “I caught the baby after getting Nicole on the floor. I put the baby onto Nicole’s chest.” An astonished Mayo even cut the infant’s umbilical cord after paramedics arrived.
Mayo describes the delivery as a “once-in-a-lifetime experience that I wouldn’t have had any other way.’’ Nicole says the birth brought them even closer as a couple, particularly since their first daughter was delivered by Caesarean section. “It was an amazing experience, and I would do it all over again,” she says.
Around 11 a.m. that day, the Mayos showered social media with the news from VCU Medical Center, where they were taken once the ambulance arrived. “I am excited to announce the arrival of baby Mayo … crazy start of the day with an unplanned home birth,” read Mayo’s social media post, accompanied by a photo of the smiling couple, newborn Danielle and 2-year-old daughter Brooke.
Which makes Father’s Day all the more special for Mayo, 44, who was raised by his mother after his parents divorced when he was 5.
“We only talk on occasion,” says Mayo about his relationship with his father, who lives in Washington, D.C. “Instead of dwelling on his absence, I use it as a motivator of how I want to be different as a father. I will make sure that I am around, spend time with my girls and set an example of what a healthy relationship looks like. My mom had to play both roles, which she did very well, and I can’t thank her enough. I don’t want my wife to have to be the mom and dad; I want to be that No. 1 positive male in their lives and always be there for them.”
Mayo has also been a father figure for dozens of Richmond-area youth.
Mayo, left, with Team Excel students from Varina High School after their senior awards ceremony: Christian (CJ) Jones; Ronald (Trey) Smith; Hershai James; Charles Cheatwood; Brandon Smith, middle school program manager; Asia Farmer; and Lashunda Dotson, high school program manager (Photo courtesy Johnathan Mayo)
Four years ago, Avail was tapped to manage Team Excel, an academic program created by Excel to Excellence, a nonprofit founded by Robinson. After retiring in 2014, Robinson wanted to focus on youth near where he grew up in Varina, and at Varina High School, where he starred in football.
Team Excel is a form of reverse “fantasy football.” Students become academic athletes who are guided by professional athletes and community mentors. Each week, the students are awarded scores based on their grades, attendance and community service. Teams vie for weekly prizes, with grand prizes given out at the end of the school year.
The program now serves more than 200 students across four schools including Varina High. Mayo’s first class of 30 students from Varina High School graduated last Thursday. He returned from a business trip to San Francisco in time to attend the graduation.
Mayo refers to the students, with whom he has worked since they were ninth-graders, as his “babies.”
“I have seen them grow up and mature,” says Mayo. “It’s been a rewarding relationship, and I recently shared with them that they motivate me, just as I hope I’ve motivated them.
“When you are a role model to others, it also forces you to look within to be your best,” Mayo adds. “I’m so proud of our students just as if they were my own kids, and I want nothing but the best for them, and they know I would do anything for them.”
Nicole Mayo shares the same enthusiasm for the students and considers them family. And her pride in her husband, whose life once was dominated by work, is palpable.
“The adjustment has been huge,” she says. “He has such a huge heart for children. … Team Excel, that’s what he loves. Here at home, he’s like the gentle giant, and he’s committed to being there for his daughters, whether it’s bath time in the evenings or kicking around the soccer ball outside.”
Never miss a Sunday Story: Sign up for the newsletter, and we’ll drop a fresh read into your inbox at the start of each week. To keep up with the latest posts, search for the hashtag #SundayStory on Twitter and Facebook.
