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68 Blocks: Life, death, hope: Part 4 of 5

Pushing back against the tide

Mayhem has a kind of momentum; it can be exhausting to resist. In Bowdoin-Geneva, an anticrime effort flops. And Big Nate explodes. But the peace festival rocks, and a son in jail has started to pray.

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Theresa Johnson’s life is a whirl, from the home that is the center of family life to the job she cherishes as a school secretary to the struggle to keep her sons safe. Through it all – whether sitting outside a jail or dancing to blow off steam – her unquenchable spirit and dry wit remain intact.

  • Theresa Johnson talks on the phone while her daughter, Ceecee, fixes the hair of her granddaughter Trinity.
    Yoon S. Byun/Globe Staff
    Theresa Johnson talked on the phone while her daughter, Ceecee, fixed the hair of her granddaughter Trinity.
  • Theresa Johnson, center, speaks with daughter, Ceecee, left, and her granddaughter's mother Tricia Ariol, right, while preparing lasagna at her home in Dorchester on June 13.
    Yoon S. Byun/Globe Staff
    Theresa Johnson, center, spoke with her daughter, Ceecee, left, and her granddaughter's mother, Tricia Ariol while preparing lasagna at her home in Dorchester on June 13.
  • Secretary at the Marshall Elementary School in Dorchester, Theresa Johnson, gets a hug from 1st grader Shaundene Funches on the last day of the school year.
    Bill Greene/globe staff
    Theresa Johnson, secretary at the Marshall Elementary School in Dorchester, got a hug from first-grader Shaundene Funches on the last day of the school year.
  • A peace magnet is displayed on the refrigerator of Theresa Johnson’s home in Dorchester,
    Yoon S. Byun/Globe Staff
    A peace magnet is displayed on the refrigerator of Theresa Johnson’s home in Dorchester,
  • Sean Dale-Johnson, 24, looks back at his daughter’s mother, Tricia Ariol, during his September court appearance in Quincy District Court. Sean violated his probation and is in jail awaiting trial in a separate case. His family is trying to survive the anxiety of not knowing when he’ll be home.
    Debee Tlumacki for the Boston Globe
    Sean Dale-Johnson, 24, looked back at his daughter’s mother, Tricia Ariol, during his September court appearance in Quincy District Court. Sean violated his probation and is in jail awaiting trial in a separate case. His family is trying to survive the anxiety of not knowing when he’ll be home.
  • Theresa Johnson sits in the car as her daughter Ceecee returns from putting money in Theresa's sons' canteen. Theresa's son Sean is at the South Bay House of Correction.
    Yoon S. Byun/Globe Staff
    Theresa Johnson sat in the car as her daughter, Ceecee, returned from putting money in Theresa's sons' canteen. Theresa's son Sean is at the South Bay House of Correction.
  • Jalanae, Theresa’s youngest child, gets her hair done by mother while Tricia Ariol, mother of Jalanae's neice, looks on. Theresa Johnson sent her daughter to Crossroads for Kids summer camp, starting at home and seeing her off at BC High School on, July 14.
    Yoon S. Byun/Globe Staff
    Jalanae, Theresa’s youngest child, got her hair done by her mother while Tricia Ariol, mother of Jalanae's neice, looked on. Theresa Johnson sent her daughter to Crossroads for Kids summer camp, starting at home and seeing her off at BC High School on July 14.
  • Theresa Johnson, right, took a picture of her son Etohn Dale-Johnson while he plays "Deal or No Deal." as they celebrated the birthday of her nephew at Dave and Buster's in Braintree on Aug 19.
    Yoon S. Byun/Globe Staff
    Theresa Johnson, right, took a picture of her son, Etohn Dale-Johnson, while he played "Deal or No Deal" during a birthday celebration for her nephew at Dave and Buster's in Braintree on Aug 19.
  • Theresa Johnson celebrated her birthday at Slades Bar and Grille in Roxbury on Aug 31.
    Yoon S. Byun/Globe Staff
    Theresa Johnson celebrated her birthday at Slades Bar and Grille in Roxbury on Aug. 31.
  • A tearful Theresa Johnson, left, hugged her daughter Jalanae as she returns from Crossroads for Kids camp on Aug 2.
    Yoon S. Byun/Globe Staff
    A tearful Theresa Johnson, left, hugged her daughter Jalanae as she returned from Crossroads for Kids camp on Aug 2.
  • Trinity Dale-Johnson, granddaughter of Theresa Johnson, looks out the window of Johnson's home in Dorchester on June 13.
    Yoon S. Byun/Globe Staff
    Trinity Dale-Johnson, granddaughter of Theresa Johnson, looked out the window of Johnson's home in Dorchester on June 13.
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