Testimonials

“As the State Senator representing Fall River, improving the safety of our communities and developing strategies to address youth violence is one of my top priorities. The work of the Fall River Youth Violence Prevention team is making Fall River a safer, stronger community, and providing much-needed support to at-risk youth. I have been proud to support the Shannon partners, and I remain committed to combatting violence in our community.”

– State Senator Michael J. Rodrigues

Testimonials

“I have seen first-hand the results of the Shannon Grant and the positive impact it has had on our most at-risk youth. As a state representative, I’m proud to support the Youth Violence Prevention initiative and to continue working with our community leaders who have made a commitment to improving the lives of many of our residents.”

– Representative Carole Fiola

Testimonials

“As a member of the Joint Committee on Public Safety and Homeland Security and a police officer for 22 years and now representing Fall River in the House of Representatives, addressing Youth Violence and Crime Prevention has been a life long dedication and passion. I am proud to continue my support of the Shannon Grant to insure the needs of our city youth with highest risk.”

– Representative Alan Silvia

Testimonials

“The impact of the violence prevention funding that we are receiving has been that as providers, we are able to collaborate more often and provide services to the young people who need it most. We have seen a great amount of growth in our programs as well as the youth that benefit from them.”

– Annemarie Sharkey, Greater Fall River RE-Creation

Testimonials

“The FRYVPI has allowed Greater Re-creation’s Youth Outreach Program to provide a wide array of individualized services to youth and their families most at-risk for violence and gang activity. In working collaboratively with community partners, the program has been able to provide employment and education opportunities, pro-social activities and health services to hundreds of at-risk youth in Fall River.”

– Victoria Maniatis, Program Director, Youth Outreach Program

Testimonials

“Change happens bests when groups and individuals work collaboratively. The Shannon partnership enables all of us to connect to other like minded agencies and organizations to work together to bring about systemic change for our community.”

– Wendy Garf-Lipp, Executive Director, United Neighbors of Fall River

Testimonials

“The Boys and Girls Club prides itself in being in the “Prevention Business” and working with those who need us most, which fits right in with the goals of the Shannon Initiative. Since our collaboration with other Shannon Partners, we have been able to better target those who need the Club’s after school programs, and just as importantly, to also target the siblings who may be at risk.”

– Peter McCarthy, retired Executive Director, Boys and Girls Club of Fall River

Testimonials

“Violence prevention is always more effective when there is collaboration between necessary agencies, initiatives, and the schools, and it involves ongoing, open communication, and programs to service the needs of our children. I’ve seen the effectiveness of our programs with the reality that kids are getting jobs, respecting the need for education, and moving on to start their own families with an appreciation for the needed skills that we have been able to provide.”

– Tom Khoury, retired School Adjustment Counselor, Fall River Public Schools

Testimonials

“Fall River is a city of great collaboration, and the prevention of youth violence is no exception. We have made tremendous strides in our community, through our combined violence prevention efforts and supportive funding, to see a real change in the lives of our highest risk youth.”

– Michaela Gagne, Youth Violence Prevention Coordinator

About

The Fall River Youth Violence Prevention Initiative is a collaboration of dedicated partners focused on empowering the community-at-large to become involved in the reduction and ultimate prevention of youth violence in Fall River. Our Mission is based on the philosophy that no one program, organization, grant or approach can solve the problem of violence.

Grants

Due to Fall River Youth Violence Prevention being a nonprofit intiative, we rely on grants to keep our intiative running. Luckily for us, we have graciously been donated a variety of grants from several other intiatives. To learn more about these grants, click the button below.

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Committees

The Fall River Youth Prevention intiative is made up of multiple different committees under the umbrella of Greater Fall River Partners for a Healthier Community. To learn more about our committees, click the button below.

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Youth Violence Prevention Websites

  • Senator Charles E. Shannon , Jr. Community Safety Initiative: This is a program to stimulate regional and multi-disciplinary approaches to combat gang violence through coordinated programs for prevention and intervention.
  • Office of Juvenile Justice and Deliquency Prevention (OJJDP): Charged by Congress to meet this challenge, OJJDP collaborates with professionals from diverse disciplines to improve juvenile Usinjustice policies and practices.
  • Riverside Trauma Center: Riverside Trauma Center, a service of Riverside Community Care, provides critical incident services to communities, schools, health and human services providers, organizations, government agencies, workplaces, and individuals in many areas of Massachusetts.
  • RFK National Resource Center for Juvenile Justice: The Robert F. Kennedy National Resource Center for Juvenile Justice, works to advance the national platform for juvenile justice system reform developed through the long history of support from the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation.
  • SAVE – Students Against Violence Everywhere: SAVE is a student driven organization. Students learn about alternatives to violence and practice what they learn through school and community service projects.
  • National Gang Center: The National Gang Center Web site features the latest research about gangs; descriptions of evidence-based, anti-gang programs; and links to tools, databases, and other resources to assist in developing and implementing effective community-based gang prevention, intervention, and suppression strategies.
  • National Center for Juvenile Justice: The mission of the National Center for Juvenile Justice is effective justice for children and families.
  • United States Department of Justice’s Defending Childhood Initiative: Attorney General Eric Holder launched the Defending Childhood initiative on September 23, 2010, to address a national crisis: the exposure of America’s children to violence as victims and as witnesses.
  • Louis D. Brown Peace Institute: The Louis D. Brown Peace Institute assists and empowers families impacted by violence by providing support to survivors of homicide.
  • Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC): CDC features a Violence Prevention component to their organization. CDC is committed to stopping violence before it begins.

Resources