When Isaac Pardo thinks about his memories with Ja'Marcus Smalls — known to many as simply “J-Marc” — he remembers someone special.
Pardo remembers a joyous person who saw a different side to Pardo.
Smalls saw the potential in Pardo, long before Pardo could even see it in himself.
Even though the location where Pardo first met Smalls wasn’t ideal, the brotherhood that formed between the pair after made it clear — their meeting was meant to be.
“It was actually at Greer Middle School when I met [Ja'Marcus] for the first time. A friend and I had been sent to ISS (In-School Suspension),” said Pardo. “He was the ISS Coordinator. He and I just really connected from there. After that day, we became really tight. He took four of my boys and me under his wing. He told us he was going to have our back.
“He became like a big brother to us that we all never had.”
Smalls was just 25 years old when he tragically passed away in a car accident in late 2025. He was remembered by the Greer community as an uplifter, rarely seen without a wide smile across his face. He was a mentor to the youth in the Greer community, always putting himself second and sacrificing for others.
His positive, radiating spirit was felt far and wide while Smalls was here.
Its absence was felt even deeper when he was gone.
The late Ja'Marcus Smalls holds up Pardo after a game at Dooley Field.
“When I first heard the news, I was in shock and disbelief,” said Pardo. “I truly didn’t believe it at first. When I got the text from my buddy, Calvin, telling me what had happened, I just froze.”
When Pardo mentions his “boys” — the group that Smalls mentored closest, investing in their growth, spending constant time during and after school with — he’s referring to himself and four other Greer students. That’s Pardo, Calvin McCoy, Qua’von Wilson, Anius Smith, and Tre’Darius Johnson.
The five of them ended up in the school office after finding out the news of Smalls’ passing. They left with tears in their eyes and holes in their hearts.
“It didn’t feel real to us at all,” said Pardo. “It was surreal. All of our hearts were broken.”
“[Ja'Marcus] gave his time when it was inconvenient,” said Greer assistant athletic director Birdie Barbare. “He gave his strength when he was tired. He gave resources when it would have been easier to hold on. He sacrificed comfort so others could benefit. Like a farmer scattering seed, he poured himself out so others could grow.”
Pardo is just one of countless students in the Greer community who are products of Smalls’ impact.
In tribute to Smalls, Pardo is dedicating this soccer season to his memory.
Pardo is a junior standout for Greer boys soccer, currently leading the team with 14 goals. He has scored in every game this season and is leading Greer toward another historic year.
Pardo stands behind a flag at Dooley Field dedicated to the life of Smalls.
He’s putting it all on the line this year, he says. It’s all for Smalls.
“It’s all for him. It’s been motivational for me and for us as a team,” said Pardo. “There’s something bigger to play for than any one of us. There’s a bigger picture, and it’s him.”
Smalls was influential to the entire soccer team. Before his passing, he drove the bus to all of the team’s away games, never missing a match.
“He was so supportive of us as a team,” said Pardo. “Before every game, he’d give us a speech telling us we deserved to be where we were, and that our potential was there to take us as far as we wanted. He was a brother to all of us.”
“[Ja'Marcus] never met a stranger. He just had a deep love for people,” said Greer soccer head coach Nick Roberson. “He didn’t ask, ' How are you today?’ as a formality; he asked because he truly cared. His smile was absolutely infectious. With J-Marc, he really took the time to make sure that everybody he interacted with felt seen and heard. That’s so rare in today’s world.”
Roberson recalled the special relationship shared between Smalls and the soccer team, and specifically, Pardo.
“With our [players] especially, they all knew they could call him anytime, and he would be there,” said Roberson. “I think that’s a massive reason that he and Isaac were so close. I think that’s been a key to Isaac’s success this season, too. He knows that although J-Marc may not be in the stands, he’s looking down on Isaac and this team every step of the way.
“It’s so hard at this early stage of a young person’s life to lose someone so close. Isaac has done such an incredible job of channeling that this year and understanding that every time he laces up his boots, it’s another opportunity to honor the life of J-Marc.”
Before the season, the team placed a flag with Smalls’ picture on it at Dooley Field.
Pardo wears a necklace every day with a picture of Smalls and himself inside it.
Pardo holds up his necklace with a photo of him and Smalls inside of it.
He’s playing the best soccer of his career this year, and his motivation to keep shining for Smalls is only growing stronger.
Pardo knows Smalls is still looking down on him with his trademark infectious smile.
“I’m going to make him proud,” said Pardo. “I wish I could tell him that. But everything that he and I talked about is going to come true. We’re going to make it."
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