STOCKTON, Calif. — A new $2 million grant is aiming to help city officials in Stockton prevent crime, address trauma and reach more members of the youth who could be at risk of becoming involved in violence.
In November, the California Violence Intervention and Prevention Program awarded the city the grant. During a recent council meeting, city council members approved allocations of that funding.
The money will go to seven organizations that will provide services to Office of Violence Prevention clients or that will provide training for the office's new youth prevention and intervention steering committee.
"This steering committee is going to help us develop an integrated, citywide system where families can reach out for support if they have a youth who might be struggling with gangs or guns," said Lora Larson, director of Stockton's Office of Violence Prevention. "We want to get upstream of youth before they actually are involved with gangs and guns because we know that once that happens it's a lot harder to help them back away from that."
The committee will refer youth and families to resources offered by community organizations.
With the funding, the office will be able to expand its services to reach youth between the ages of 12 and 17 through the new committee and the office's existing ceasefire strategy.
The ceasefire strategy, one of two operations that the office currently uses to prevent crime, consists of direct intervention communication with youth and young adults who have become involved in violence.
The other operation is called operation peacekeeper which employs mentors who work with young adults at the highest risk of gang involvement.
"The city of Stockton has used a ceasefire strategy for many years and it has produced a multi-year citywide reduction in gun and gang violence," said Larson. "The Office of Violence Prevention has always provided intervention for high-risk individuals involved in gun and gang violence, but now we really want to focus on both the prevention side as well as the intervention side of it."
Three organizations receiving portions of the funding include Be Smooth Inc., Choices for Freedom Inc. and UC Davis. The organizations will provide trauma healing services to those at risk of becoming involved in violence and for staff members dealing with second-hand trauma.
With the new committee and expanded services, Larson is hoping to curb crime before it happens and build a better environment for youth in the city.
"The city of Stockton is rich in resources, but it's even more rich with people who really care about their community and the people in the communities," said Larson, "A family could be struggling- 'I need help for my child'- but they just don't know where to go so we're really hoping this could be a hub."
Watch more Stockton news from ABC10: Update | Man who killed Stockton Fire Captain Max Fortuna found guilty of murder
