Valerie Castile looks to continue her son Philando’s legacy through foundation work

Valerie Castile never imagined herself doing the work that she is now.

In the eight years since her son Philando Castile was fatally shot by a St. Anthony police officer in Falcon Heights in 2016, Valerie Castile has helped raise more than $200,000 to pay off school lunch debt for students, given out turkeys to families during the holidays and provided resources to those impacted by gun violence through her organization the Philando Castile Relief Foundation.

While she did not envision herself in these roles, Castile said, the best way to continue Philando’s legacy was to support what he held near to his heart and that was children, family and community.

“The easiest thing I could have done was to do nothing and we wouldn’t be having this conversation because I would have just went on about my life,” Castile said. “But [there’s] so much wrong in society that if you lose someone, you lose a part of yourself. But then that opens up an area in your heart to look out for somebody else.”

School meals

As a nutrition services supervisor with JJ Hill Montessori Magnet School, Philando knew all of the children by name and their allergies and would even at times pay for students’ food, Castile said. Castile said she feels like her son was advocating and he didn’t know it.

“He started something and the more I thought about it, I felt it was ridiculous that they didn’t have free meals,” Castile said.

That changed in Minnesota in 2023 when a bill signed into law allocated more than $800 million in funding for school lunches and breakfasts over the next four years. The bill made Minnesota the fourth state to create a free school lunch program.

The program is going into its second school year and has saved Minnesota families more than $267.81 million in its first year, or $1,000 in savings per student per year, according to the Minnesota Department of Education.

Castile hopes to do further fundraising in November to help families pay off student meal debt that still exists.

St. Paul Public Schools’ annual lunch debt for students was around $150,000 prior to the free school meals program, said SPPS Nutrition Services Director Stacy Koppen. Once the free school meals program started in Minnesota, that dropped to about $6,300, Koppen said. This year, there is around $1,700 of unpaid meal debt.

The district is working to educate families on how the program works in order to avoid the accumulation of more debt, Koppen said. Students receive one free breakfast and one free lunch in all SPPS schools as long as they include at least half a cup of fruits or vegetables and one other serving of food. If a student chooses a meal that doesn’t meet these requirements or they get a second meal or single items, debt can accumulate.

Holiday season

As the holiday season approaches, Castile has plans to give out turkeys and gift cards to families in need or impacted by gun violence. The foundation connects with the families through clergy, funeral homes and other contacts, said Clarence Castile, Philando Castile Relief Foundation director and Valerie’s brother.

Castile also wants to turn her focus to finding housing for single mothers so they can save up for homeownership. The foundation focuses on areas that connect back to who Philando was and his impact in the community, said Renita Johnson, board secretary and Philando’s cousin.

“So our board activities, the things that we do, all trace back to Philando’s way of impacting those around him. So the assisting or supporting those who’ve been affected by gun violence is directly connected to how we lost him,” Johnson said. “There was the school lunch debt that we were really fighting for and got some leeway with Governor Walz making a shift for that, that was connected to what Philando did.”

Several years ago, Castile also teamed up with Ramsey County Attorney John Choi to develop a tool kit for prosecutors and police to assess how prepared they are for officer-involved shootings.

Castile’s work centers around remembering her son and his life, whether that’s through a yearly candlelight vigil held in Falcon Heights, a peace garden and Central Senior High School scholarship named for him or Falcon Height’s annual restoration and unity days.

“…Everything I do is something that Philando felt near and dear to his heart,” Castile said.

Policing contract

Falcon Heights recently renewed its police services partnership with St. Anthony after the two cities ended their long-standing one following the death of Philando. Falcon Heights officials informed Castile of their plans to discuss a renewed partnership with St. Anthony before it was finalized.

“We sat down with Valerie before and to let her know that we were going to be having these discussions. That was important for us,” Falcon Heights City Administrator Jack Linehan told the Pioneer Press at the time the partnership was being considered.

Castile said she has a strong relationship with the Falcon Heights administration and that she is fortunate they have a connection where they would inform her of the renewed policing partnership. Castile said she does not blame the administration for her son’s death. St. Anthony officer Jeronimo Yanez was charged with manslaughter in connection with the shooting but found not guilty during a 2017 trial.

“I have no problem with (the renewal), because it seems to me that they have a big turnover in the police chief and some of the staff as well, and them thinking about hiring more officers, and my only concern when they were talking was that I wanted to make sure that they hired people of color and women,” Castile said.

Castile said she also would like to see more off-site mental health support available for officers.

And, she said she would advise anyone dealing with trauma to reach out to organizations, get support, and, if possible, to volunteer, such as by helping at a food shelf. Have empathy and help others, Castile said.

It is important to Valerie to continue Philando’s legacy by doing good things for others, Clarence said.

“He did good things with the kids, so she kind of want to continue to carry on this legacy by doing good things for peoples in his name,” Clarence said.