Submitted by proud parents Alphonso and Lavinia Mason
Shomari Mason was born on March 10th, 2001 at Healthpark Hospital to parents Alphonso and Lavinia. Growing up in Fort Myers, Shomari always had big dreams, but he was actually scared to walk on grass as a baby. He would soon dominate the green pastures.
Shomari attended J. Colin English Elementary School in North Fort Myers, but his family moved to Cape Coral in 2004. Even as a young child, Shomari was very competitive. He earned the nickname “Lil’ Sho” at birth because he always had to be the center of attention around his family, no matter what. Growing up, he has been blessed with raw, natural talent and skills, on and off the field.
Sho (as he is called by family and friends) attended Mariner Middle School, but when he was cut from the basketball team, it changed his whole perspective regarding his work ethic and desire to succeed. He started training harder and smarter, working on his technique. All his training paid off, as Shomari is one of the best Pop Warner players to ever come through the Cape Youth Football Association.
Around the end of Sho’s 5th-grade year, he started attending a lot of youth camps. The first one was the Al Golden camp in Miami. “I’ll never forget the sounds and expressions everybody gave Shomari when he was just a little guy,” said dad, Al. Shomari attended the Al Golden camp 4 years in a row, along with camps at FAU, FIU, USF, UF, and FIT.
Shomari is more than just an athlete. He is a member of the Saint Mary Missionary Baptist Church in Fort Myers. He’s been a Junior Coach for the Cape Youth organization for 4+ years. Sho is a big inspiration to his little brother, 9-year-old Al, Jr. And he is a great friend and mentor to those who know him.
The biggest accomplishment of Shomari’s life to date has been making the US17 National Football Team in 2017 at West Georgia University. Sho had great scoring drives in 2 different games and was invited to play running back in the International Bowl, played at the Dallas Cowboys Stadium. He had another great game and an amazing life experience.
Shomari is currently a Junior at Ida Baker High School and has already had 2 recruiting trips to FAU and Bethune Cookman. He’d like to get his college degree in Sports Management, with a minor in Physical Therapy. Eventually, he’s like to become a sports agent or a college football coach. His goal is to attend college in the southern states so that his family can continue to support his football career, traveling to see his games whenever possible.
The Mason family thanks God for all that he has given Shomari and for the people who have supported him and his family over the years.
Publisher’s Note: As someone who has been fortunate to watch Shomari play football since he was little, it’s been a joy to see him grow up to be an amazing talent, a humble person, always polite and grateful for what he has. It will be a thrill to see him join the ranks of college and professional athletes to come out of Cape Coral.
Shomari’s achievements:
- JV Offensive Player of the Year (2015)
- Varsity “Top Newcomer” Award (2016)
- First Team All County (2017)
- All District Honorable Mention (2017)
- Offensive Player of the Year (2017)
- Special Teams Player of the Year (2017)
- US U-17 National Team member (2018), beating Team British Columbia in 2018 International Bowl
- Broke the Ida Baker HS record for long jump.
