Jenifer Klepesky
Running For Madison’s Miracles
story by MICAH PEPPERS photos by JOHN WOLLWERTH
Philadelphia police officer James Klepesky, and his wife, sexual assault victim advocate Jenifer Klepesky, wanted to provide the best life for their eight children, Alexandria aka “Alex,” James aka “JP,” Madison, Nick, Olivia, Veronica, Mary-Kate, and Joseph.
Originally from Fox Chase, a neighborhood located northeast of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, the family felt the more laid-back, smaller town of Beaufort would be a better fit. Jenifer and their five youngest children relocated to Beaufort while Jim stayed behind in Philadelphia, pending medical retirement from the police department. Jenifer explains, “We thought it would be safer in the Lowcountry area, so we moved the family to Beaufort in 2021. The two oldest children, Alex and JP, remained in Philadelphia. JP is attending college there, and Alex is working full-time while raising her daughter, our granddaughter, four-year-old Carson Grace. Madison stayed behind in Philadelphia to finish her senior year at St. Hubert Catholic High School for Girls.”
Upon graduation, Madison moved to Beaufort and enrolled at the University of South Carolina Beaufort.
Jenifer adds, “She was so close to her family and loved her dad’s barbeque. She really wanted to experience dorm life, but stay close to home, especially so she could come home anytime to enjoy his BBQ and spend time with her family. Madison treasured her family. She loved life, and she was an amazing daughter, sister, granddaughter, great-granddaughter, cousin, aunt, and friend.”
Her love of food didn’t stop at her dad’s barbeque. A bit of a foodie, Madison got a job as a server at Frankie Bones. Jenifer adds,
“She was so proud to have that job. She learned a lot, and she was naturally talented with food creations. She was an amazing chef. She could make fantastic recipes on her own and made the most beautiful charcuterie boards.”
Being near her family also allowed Madison to continue spending time with her younger siblings. Being one of eight children, Madison was like a third parent to them. “Madison had her little sisters, Mary-Kate and Veronica, spend the night in her dorm on a Friday night. While other college students would be out, she just wanted to have a girls’ night with them,” stated Jenifer. “Her sisters absolutely loved it.”
But her true gift was fashion. Madison was naturally talented and had asked for her own sewing machine for Christmas, so she could make her own clothes. While still attending St. Hubert Catholic High School for Girls in Fox Chase, Philadelphia, Madison approached her textile teacher, wanting to make a corset. The teacher advised her to wait until she had more experience. Within a few weeks, Madison showed back up with her corset. She was stuck and needed some guidance. She would go on to complete that corset and sent a picture to her textile teacher when she did. She was driven and determined. The last Christmas before they moved, Madison even made Christmas dresses for her little sisters, Mary-Kate and Veronica.
Jenifer recalls when Madison met JonPaul. “Madison didn’t really date. In high school, she told me that she figured she might not meet anyone until college. Her senior year, she and some friends got dressed up for prom, took pictures, and then had a girls’ weekend. They didn’t even go to prom. When she started college, her father and I had weekly lunches with Madison. At one lunch, she told her parents about a cute boy who knocked on her window. Madison smiled while telling her parents that he just wanted to tell her that she was the most beautiful girl he had ever seen. He had asked for her Snapchat handle.” That boy was local Bluffton native and star soccer player, 19-year-old JonPaul Gonzalez.
JonPaul proceeded to ask Madison to brunch on Sunday, but when she responded that she needed to attend Mass first, JonPaul volunteered to go with her, and the two had brunch afterward. Jenifer smiles, recalling Madison’s reaction. “She was so excited about JonPaul. She told me, ‘Mom, he went to church with me. What boy does that?’ A respectful one, I told her. They fell in love.” Jenifer later found out that JonPaul had confided to his father that he truly believed Madison was the one for him.
The eighteen-year-old business major, who had a love of fashion and food, and her boyfriend, JonPaul, had their whole life ahead of them. However, on December 4, 2021, their world would change forever. That Friday night, Madison, along with a few other friends, were enjoying a night playing cards at JonPaul’s dorm. At some point, one of the friends suggested the group head to a bonfire on the Savannah River in Hardeeville. They all left the dorm and headed to their cars. Madison and JonPaul decided to drive together, so the two got into her 2017 Hyundai and headed out for the night.
At around 10:30 p.m., they approached the intersection of Old Charleston Highway and Becks Ferry Road. It was a dark night as the two continued to cross the intersection to proceed onto Becks Ferry Road. Unfortunately, a high and drunk driver, with a history of multiple DUI offenses and later determined to be going 116 mph, was headed down Old Charleston Highway when he drifted into the left lane, T-boning Madison’s car at 107 mph on impact, killing both her and JonPaul instantly. A beautiful memorial remains at the intersection where the two of them were killed.
At 2:39 a.m., the Klepeskys received a knock on the door that no parent should ever receive. “That was a horrible night. I would often awake at 2:39 a.m., reliving it, hearing a knock at the door, and being frozen in fear. Madison’s death not only affected us, but it created a rippling result. It has been horrific to everyone even outside of Jim, Madison’s siblings, and me. It’s affected her cousins and friends. Even things like how her sisters used to FaceTime with her just to talk about boys or ask for advice. That was taken from them. She was and still is, so loved.”
Through her grief, Jenifer wanted to do something positive in Madison’s memory. “Madison ran track and field. I don’t run. I despise exercising, but felt I needed to do something just for her, so I signed up for three 5Ks. I’ve been training, and my first one will be on October 8. I carry a picture of Madison in my pocket, so she’s always by my side, running with me,” Jenifer says.
But it didn’t just stop with a personal challenge of running. Madison’s family created “Madison’s Miracles, Inc,” a nonprofit dedicated to providing scholarships in Madison’s name and covering funeral costs for other families who experience similar tragedies. “We also want to fund proms for underprivileged children. Madison refused to pay for clothing that she could make herself, and even though she ditched her own prom, it was important to Madison to make her friends feel beautiful. She would want them to have the opportunity to get dressed up and not worry about the cost. Madison was always giving fashion advice to her friends and siblings, and would help do their makeup and hair. She was the most selfless and giving person with the biggest heart and the most contagious laugh.”
Madison’s Miracles, Inc. has a plan to raise funding. “We are in the process of setting up a 5K planned for June 10, 2023, Madison’s 20th birthday. We are also looking into a golf outing as well, and we have a Paint and Sip night at Southern Palette Studio planned for October 21st. In addition, we plan on having a Michael Kors Bag Bingo. She loved Michael Kors, and we also find it appropriate that the initials are also MK. All the money raised will go to sustaining the charity as well as carrying out charitable acts in her memory.”
St. Hubert Catholic High School created a memorial scholarship, and Surge Restaurant, the company which owns Frankie Bones, also set up a $1,000 USCB hospitality scholarship. Both scholarships are awarded in Madison’s name.
The JonPaul Gonzalez Scholarship was established by the Ibis Foundation, with the support of the Gonzalez family, to honor JonPaul and his love of soccer. As a Tormenta FC Academy player for over a decade, the money raised will provide opportunities for other Academy players as well as making sure equipment stays up-to-date.
Even through their grief, Madison’s loved ones continue to remember her. After the accident, Madison’s entire graduating class from St. Hubert’s got together and held a candlelight vigil for her. The textile students from her high school dedicated their fashion show to Madison, and her friends got matching tattoos of angel wings with an M in the center. On what would have been Madison’s 19th birthday, 80 people showed up for a birthday party in Philadelphia to celebrate her life. The St. Hubert’s graduating class of 2022 dedicated an entire page to Madison in their yearbook and hosted pink dress-down days at school in her memory.
The family had resided in Beaufort less than a year prior to Madison’s accident. Even with the short stint in their new home and the overpowering waves of grief they were experiencing, the family felt the love from the Lowcountry. “We had overwhelming support from this community. Friends and neighbors would just come over and sit with me. No words. Just being with me. Southern hospitality is so true and so on point. The Parish at St. Peters has been so amazing. There were so many people coming to the house with food, gift cards, and flowers. Father Andrew came directly to the house the day of the accident and continued to follow up with us, as did many other people from the parish and the neighborhood. The kids’ schools have also been amazing with Madison’s siblings. Everyone is just so incredibly supportive,” Jenifer says through tears.
When thinking about the impact speeding, drinking and/or drugged driving has had on her family, Jenifer has a message: “Think about the impact it could have on other people. This selfish decision destroyed two families. It can happen in just a second. Madison and JonPaul’s love story was just the beginning, while the irresponsible decision of another ended their lives abruptly and so violently. Their love will continue on in Heaven where they are ‘home.’”
However, as a woman of faith, Jenifer believes in a higher purpose. “God had a plan. We don’t know why He took Madison and JonPaul, but I know that they are enjoying the Heavenly bliss of eternity. Everyone loved them.”
Jenifer continues, “Madison truly lit up every room she walked into. My grief comes in waves, but no matter what, I won’t let her memory fade. She was such a bright light that even death could not put out her flame. Her contagious laugh will echo in our ears, and her beautiful smile will never grow faint before our eyes, until we meet her again.”
If you would like to contribute to Madison’s Miracles, Inc. you can make a donation directly online at madisonsmiraclesinc.org or the Klepeskys invite you to consider participating in an upcoming fundraiser, such as Paint and Sip Night, the 5K planned for next summer, or other events to be announced. The family’s message to others: Tell your friends you love them, and remember, not all who wander are lost.
