{"id":220321,"date":"2026-06-16T11:11:07","date_gmt":"2026-06-16T11:11:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/220321\/"},"modified":"2026-06-16T11:11:07","modified_gmt":"2026-06-16T11:11:07","slug":"big-rubes-philly-jamele-ransom-crossing-guard-and-then-some","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/220321\/","title":{"rendered":"Big Rube\u2019s Philly: Jamele Ransom, Crossing Guard and Then Some"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

By now, everybody knows my friend Jamele Ransom. He\u2019s the Southwest Philly crossing guard<\/a> who went viral on May 5, after he nearly got hit by a car, then rescued a child, and talked about what happened on NBC10, while eating a Mr. Softee.<\/p>\n

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We caught up on the last day of public school here in Philly, a day a lot like the 81-degree one when Jamele became a hero.<\/p>\n

\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 Listen to the interview edition here:<\/p>\n

He was sitting in the shade outside Mitchell Elementary at 55th and Kingsessing, talking to some students. \u201cThe next thing you know, it\u2019s like you can\u2019t believe what you\u2019re about to see, because you hear something \u2014 Bam! \u2014 and you see a car coming towards you, and you just don\u2019t know what to do, besides just run,\u201d he says. By the time he bobbed and weaved out of the way, the car had crashed into the schoolyard.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>Jamele striking a pose. <\/p>\n

\u201cI want to call it an out-of-body experience, where I didn\u2019t even think about myself anymore, I just thought about the kids, just trying to make sure nobody was hurt.\u201d After he pulled a child out from under some crushed monkey bars, he \u201cput myself back together, broke down, made the calls that I needed to call,\u201d accepted a cone from the operator of a Mister Softee truck parked nearby and agreed to do an interview on NBC10.<\/p>\n

Before he knew it, that interview was racking up 15 million views, and Jimmy Kimmel was shouting Jamele out on his late night show. \u201cI don\u2019t think I got back to myself right till next week,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>Sophisticated street style. <\/p>\n

Here\u2019s the thing about Jamele. He was just being himself. He loves kids and has got personality to spare \u2014 my Nan would call that \u201clightskin.\u201d And he\u2019s not just a crossing guard. I met him back when I was starting my Streetgazing column for the Philadelphia Daily News and he had a vintage shop at 7th and Girard called Culture Couture. Jamele was the first person I photographed for my column.<\/p>\n

Jamele grew up in Southwest at 55th and Kingsessing, \u201cright where the accident happened,\u201d he says. His mom, a multi-sport athlete at John Bartram High, was 17 when she had him, so he was raised by his great aunt and uncle. His mom would go on to be a self-made businesswoman and creative. He sees a lot of his mom in himself.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>Jamele Ransom outside Suitsupply, where he worked before becoming a crossing guard. <\/p>\n

\u201cI picked up her artist ways. She was a photographer and a videographer as a young person, an entrepreneur as well,\u201d he says. She was also a little bit like me. \u201cShe made cakes and cookies at all the state fairs that I can remember,\u201d Jamele says. His first artistic passion: Fashion.<\/p>\n

Way before he was crossing kids on their way to and from Mitchell, he worked in sales at Neiman Marcus and developed his own look. \u201cI always had street style, sophisticated style. I call it \u2018church style.\u2019\u201d He was the inspiration and stylist for Jidenna\u2019s Classic Man<\/a> music video.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>Jamele Ransom, from my Streetgazing column for the Philadelphia Daily News. <\/p>\n

Later, he shadowed me on my photo shoots for my line, LipHeel\u00e9<\/a> and became the visual director for Suitsupply \u2014 a move that his peers at Neiman\u2019s doubted, but Jamele points out, today, \u201cSaks and Neiman\u2019s are on the brink of bankruptcy,\u201d while Suitsupply\u2019s still around.<\/p>\n

This summer he plans to enjoy Philly, and work on his treatment for an Abbott Elementary spinoff based on \u201ca vision that this needs to be highlighted outside of the school.\u201d He\u2019ll head back to his corner when school starts. \u201cI love this city, and I love the kids. I love my job, so I\u2019m gonna just go full throttle ahead.\u201d That\u2019s Jamele Ransom.<\/p>\n

West Philly born and raised with a slosh of Brooklyn,\u00a0Big Rube<\/a>\u00a0partnered with Mitchell & Ness in 2000 to help make it a global brand marketing and selling high-end throwback jerseys. He has been photographing Philly since 2009, including in a Daily News Column from 2011 to 2017. He\u2019s also a chef, preparing to open his own space in 2026.<\/p>\n

\"\" MORE FROM BIG RUBE\u2019S PHILLY<\/p>\n

Mitchell Elementary crossing guard Jamele Ransom on May 5, 2026. Photo by NBC10.