TULSA, Okla. — James, ‘Jimi’ Patterson, succumbed to his injuries Thursday night after Tulsa Police said a man attacked him with an axe earlier this week.

His older sister, Alyssa Robichaud, had to say goodbye to her little brother sooner than she ever imagined.

“We were very close,” she told FOX23. “We grew up together our whole lives.”

She flew to Tulsa with her cousin from Jimi’s hometown, Riverhead, N.Y., as soon as she heard her brother had been attacked.

“We called as many friends as we could, had them say goodbye while he was still in his vessel,” she said.

She said 22-year-old Jimi was a genuine person who loved his family and friends with a passion.

“He was a loving, loving soul,” Robichaud said. “He just wanted to make people laugh. He just wanted to make people smile.”

The news of Jimi’s passing hit many in Riverhead hard, like his childhood friend Gia Bausano-Mulgrew.

“I was completely shocked,” Bausano-Mulgrew said. “It was the last person I thought I was going to say goodbye to that soon. Especially so young. H was a really young, wonderful, great soul who was taken way too soon.”

Another friend, Seth Freudenberg, said Jimi’s personality was electrifying.

“He could light up a room with his smile,” he said.

He also said he wish he could talk to Jimi one last time.

“I’ll never be able to do that,” Freudenberg continued, “Someone stripped that away from me. They stripped that away from everyone. I feel awful for his mom and sister, and everybody involved. It’s a really big loss, especially here in his hometown.”

Robichaud said Jimi was also a talented artist who loved making music. She said he was also an organ donor, and with his death, his donation will save seven lives.

She left FOX23 with a note that Jimi wrote himself: “Life is all about the memories you create and the moments you capture. He says a picture is worth a thousand words but it’s also worth a thousand emotions.”

If you’d like to help the family bring Jimi back home for a proper burial, you can donate to their GoFundMe.

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