Campbell's mother, Christina Campbell, said her son was an artist who also enjoyed participating in Junior ROTC. Christina Campbell said she knew something was wrong as soon as the Gage Park High School freshman didn't come home last month.
"This was out of the norm for my child," she said. "He'd never done this before. I was telling everybody that something was wrong, something was wrong. ... He calls me when he's gonna be late. He was just one of those kids who followed the rules of the house."
The mom described her child as "kindhearted" and "hardworking." She said she had no idea who might have killed him.
"He was just a real inspirational child and he brought smiles to a lot of people's faces," Christina Campbell said.
The park where Campbell was found, in the 6700 block of South Kedzie Avenue, is about two miles from where Campbell lived.
Police were called to the lagoon on the morning of April 12 to attempt a recovery. An autopsy the next day showed that Campbell died of multiple stab wounds.
His death was ruled a homicide.
Chicago police had issued a missing person news alert for the boy on March 10 that said he had last been seen March 7 near Gage Park High School, 5630 S. Rockwell St. Police said today that the missing persons case was closed April 18, after Campbell's body had been found.
pnickeas@tribune.com
Twitter: @PeterNickeas