The Boys and Girl Clubs of Southwest Michigan have been denied a $2 million federal grant to fight violent crime in Benton Harbor, but that doesn’t mean the effort to secure the funds is over.
Berrien County Commissioner Chokwe Pitchford worked with the club to pursue the grant from the U.S. Department of Justice’s Community-based Violence Intervention and Prevention Initiative after the county board declined to seek it for the Berrien County Health Department this year.
Pitchford says the Boys and Girls Clubs learned last week they were declined.
“I am just immensely proud that in that moment where it looked like we weren’t going to be able to apply for it at all, we found a partner in the community who was willing to apply for those funds, and even though they didn’t receive them, the fight isn’t over,” Pitchford said.
Pitchford says another grant cycle will come next year, and then another attempt can be made, this time with even better planning.
“Every single dollar that comes in is a first step and a start. There is a larger conversation that needs to be had about the socio-economic factors that lead to violence and how you can start to address those factors as well.”
Pitchford says the Boys and Girls Clubs have a variety of programs that work with young people. Those could be used to teach conflict resolution or to address issues young people may be having at home.
With violent crime of all kinds a concern in Benton Harbor, he says the conversation about prevention isn’t over.
