NEWARK, NJ — The Weequahic Park Community Center was packed with young men, adults, and lots of burgers and steaks on Thursday night, June 30.
United Community Corp.’s Community-Based Violence Interruption Program hosted a steak and burger event as part of its effort to help youths find positive outlets. This specific event paired 20 young men with 20 adult mentors for the evening. The young men were given a steak to eat while the mentor ate a burger.
“We realized that a lot of the young men here in Newark were lacking positive male role models,” Community-Based Violence Intervention Program Director Charles Mainor said. “We created this event where the steak was given to the young man and the burger to the adult to let them know that we appreciate, respect and support them on their journey to step into manhood. We wanted to get rid of negative stereotypes that they may have had of men by showing them positive men.”
The youths were ages 10 through 21 and selected with the help of the Weequahic Park Sports Authority’s Youth Advocacy Program and staff members from UCC. Mentors were sourced from UCC and the Weequahic Park Sports Authority.
As each youth entered the facility, Mainor encouraged them to mingle with the mentors and select the one with whom they best connected. That would be their mentor for the evening.
“A lot of times in our lives, we are telling kids what to do and not letting them decide for themselves,” he said “This allowed them to be in charge and have their say. It worked out well.”
The evening featured games, team-building activities and the dinner provided by Top2Not2 Catering. The participants were able to bond with their mentors throughout the event, speaking about everything from school to their personal lives to where they see themselves in 10 years.
UCC board Chairperson John Jewell and board member Everett Johnson attended the event. The two spoke with a young man who had an interest in pursuing some type of career in the law and finance fields. Johnson works on the public finance team at law firm Wilentz, Goldman & Spitzer, and provided the young man with his number and other contact information so they can stay in touch.
“Sometimes these young men don’t have anyone that they can reach out to that will understand what they’re going through,” Jewell said. “When you have a resource that you can go to, it works out great for you.”
The event was UCC’s Community-Based Violence Interruption Program’s second event in five days. On Saturday, June 25, the department partnered with the Weequahic Park Sports Authority to host a three-on-three basketball tournament to introduce this program to the community. The tournament reached 32 local youths.
“A lot of times these kids living in inner-city areas don’t see positive role models like this or have positive outlets,” Jewell said. “A lot of times, kids would see the drug dealer on the corner with the nice car and money. Events like these show them the other side of things. They don’t have to go that negative route, they can find a positive outlet and a positive role model that grew up just like them.”
Photos Courtesy of Ashley Grey/United Community Corporation
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