News
Efforts to End Gang Violence Grow
Eleven-45 movement and task force gain strength
By Helen Silvis
Of The Skanner News
T
he 11:45 initiative, which mobilizes volunteers to
support Portland youth and families, is expanding.
More pastors are bringing their congregations to the
table, and more than 400 volunteers have signed up. At the
same time, the city and county’s youth violence prevention
efforts have gained new programs and staff.
“11:45 has just taken off to such a degree that it is out-
running us,” said Pastor George Merriweather at an 11:45
community event, Jan. 20, at Life Change Christian Center.
“So we realized that we have to strengthen our existing
structure and add some new structure. We also want to
strengthen our volunteer base.”
Merriweather was one of five church leaders who created
11:45 last year in response to an increase in violent crimes
involving young people. The plan was to mobilize 100 vol-
unteers who would commit to offering 45 minutes of their
time every week for one year. About 400 people answered
that initial call, with more than 300 signing up to mentor
youth.
Now, 11:45 is adding more church communities and a
website, Eleven45.org where you can sign up to join the
effort. They also have a twitter stream @Eleven45pdx and
a Facebook page. Each participating church is now to have
a point person, and the group has a dedicated communica-
tions and support volunteer. The next quarterly 11:45
community event will be from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m., April 20,
at the Northeast Community Fellowship, 636 N.E. Stanton.
Visit the website to get involved sooner.
ored 11:45 with the Community Impact award at its 3rd
annual Evening of Impact Jan. 26.
“This has surpassed buzz and it has become interest,” said
Chabre Vickers, director of community relations and diver-
sity programs for the mentoring nonprofit at the 11:45
meeting. “It’s become emails and calls. People are asking
me,‘How are you doing this? In the least-churched state?”
11:45 has also been recognized with the city’s Spirit of
Portland Award.
Among 11:45’s recent achievements: Mobilizing volun-
teers to provide a caring presence in Holladay Park every
Friday evening.
The 11:45 leadership team is: Pastor George Merri-
weather of Northeast Community Fellowship Church,
Bishop C.T. Wells of Emmanuel Temple, Bishop Steven
Holt of The International Fellowship Family, Dr. W.G
Hardy Jr. of Highland United Church of Christ, Bishop
Marcus Pollard of Emmanuel Church of God In Christ
United, and Dr. Mark Strong of Life Change Christian Cen-
ter.
Volunteers commit to serve in one of four areas: There,
Share, Care and Prayer. ‘There’ volunteers form a visible
presence in streets and parks. ‘Connected’ organized by
Pastor George Merriweather
John Canda, Robert Richardson, Sam Sachs and others has
taken the lead on that effort.
Share volunteers have become mentors, many working
with Big Brothers Big Sisters of the Columbia NW. More
than 300 people already have stepped forward to share.
Care volunteers are building a directory of resources
available through each church and in the community. They
also are reaching out to grieving families with practical help
and supportive listening. Other items on the care agenda:
crisis support and prison visiting.
Prayer volunteers commit to supporting the efforts
through active prayer.
11:45 Awards and Achievements
Big Brothers Big Sisters of the Columbia Northwest hon-
A Boost for Violence Prevention Efforts
P
ortland’s gang task
force gained some
new faces Jan. 20 at
the Northeast police
precinct on Martin
Luther King Jr. Blvd
and N.E.
Killingsworth St. The
task force meets every
second Friday at 10
a.m. Antoinette
Edwards, now leading
Roberta Phillips and
the Office of Youth
Rebecca Stavenjord
Violence Prevention,
introduced key players, who will be spearheading
new efforts to support families and keep youth out of
the justice system.
Rebecca Stavenjord, coordinator of Multnomah
County’s new STRYVE program introduced staff
members. Funded through a grant from the Centers for
Disease Control, STRYVE will help coordinate com-
munity prevention work. Stavenjord vows to keep
community members front and center of the work.
“We want this to be an authentic community process
and we want it to be infused with the strength that
already exists in the community,” she told The Skan-
ner News.
So far STRYVE has hired Lane Community College
student Derriel Ingram as a part-time weekend youth
organizer. Two more community organizers are being
hired from 130 people who applied for the jobs. Port-
land is one of just four cities to receive Stryve funding.
The Centers for Disease Control created the STRYVE
program to tackle youth violence from a public health
perspective. Violence is a health problem because vio-
lence is the leading cause of death for young African
American men.
Joe McFerrin, president and CEO of Portland
Opportunities and Industrialization Center explained
POIC’s four programs that work with youth and fami-
lies. The high school program helps disadvantaged and
gang-affected students stay in school and graduate. It
works with youth until age 25. The Civic Justice Corps
program works with young people with a juvenile jus-
tice history, helping them get GED’s or diplomas as
well as work skills. The Summer Works program
offers paid work to 90 students every summer. And a
new Community Healing Initiative will offer intensive
wraparound support to 60 high-risk youth and their
families. The Latino Network is offering a similar pro-
gram.
February 8, 2012 The Portland Skanner Page 7