STREET FRATERNITY INC
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Mission Statement
To provide a place of brotherhood and personal growth for urban young men.
About This Cause
Street Fraternity opened on April 1, 2013. Our original intent and mission was to create “a place of brotherhood and personal growth for violent young men”. This is why we chose to locate in the East Colfax neighborhoods of Aurora and Denver, the most violent and crime ridden location in the Rocky Mountains. About 80% of the young men who have most consistently participated are former refugees from many African countries, Burma, and Bhutan (about 80% of our participants). We eventually changed our mission by changing the word “violent” to “urban”, thus our mission is to provide “a place of brotherhood and personal growth for urban young men”. Violence was no longer the primary issue, but has remained one of our top 5 challenges which include (in no particular order) drugs/alcohol, money (legal & illegal), violence, school progress, and “belonging & respect”. We know how to attract and work with young men who might otherwise become involved in the criminal justice system. Our Co-Founders reflect the unique mission, strategy, and location of the Street Fraternity. Yoal, our Executive Director, is a Denver University graduate who came to the U.S. in middle school from Eritrea, East Africa and had previous work experience with refugees. Levon, our founding Program Coordinator, grew up in inner city Memphis and hustled the streets of East Colfax before completing a 20+ yr. sentence in prison. Amadou, also a founding Program Specialist, achieved his B.A. in Criminal Justice at Johnson & Wales University in Denver after surviving with some of his family the genocide of Charles Taylor in Liberia. Dave, a co-founding volunteer, is the past founder of the former The Spot gang youth center and CEO of Big Brothers Big Sisters of Colorado. Together with our guys, increasingly leaders themselves, we are developing the Street Fraternity. Mission & Vision: Street Fraternity is a place of brotherhood and personal growth for urban young men. We seek nothing short of Generational Change. We will achieve this by providing alternative pathways to success. Our young men will be safe, independent (contributing to society), and connected to their communities. In turn, they will provide influence and support so that their own children will achieve these same benchmarks in life and have greater opportunity for personal growth and productivity. The end result is an improved community. GOALS: 1. Attract the consistent voluntary participation from urban young men ages 14 - 25+ yrs. from the East Colfax neighborhoods of Aurora and Denver. 2. Help our young men stay alive and healthy, including dealing with aggression, violence, trauma, substance abuse, and mental & physical health. 3. Gain an understanding of our individual participants and their backgrounds. 4. Build a deep sense of belonging and brotherhood among this diverse group of young men from the USA, many African countries, Burma, Bhutan, and other countries. 5. Help our young men develop legal options to make money, advance their education, and have positive options in their life. Specific program objectives are to: 1.Attract the consistent voluntary participation of at least 35-70 unduplicated young men. 2.Facilitate personal growth through one-on-one relationships, support, referrals and, when necessary, interventions. This will be tracked on an ongoing basis through qualitative/anecdotal measures. 3. Begin to track quantitative change among participants through annual surveys. Activities/Program Model: We do not “recruit” young men and they are not “assigned” to us. Therefore, our program model is a cycle that begins with Food & Fun. Word of mouth entices young men to drop in during afternoon and evening hours. We are open Mondays-Thursdays 4-9pm year round. We offer a communal nightly dinner during which young men visit with each other and with our staff and volunteers. Before and after dinner, the young men are free to use any of our rooms: Sigma Chi Music Studio – we host music production and lyric writing workshops. Active Room – our young men release aggressive energy using our boxing and workout equipment. Ping Pong Room – friendly competition and occasional tournaments make this a popular room with our young men. Computer Lab – donated computers are used primarily for social media, as well as homework, job searches, and applications. Meditative/Prayer Room – this is our quietest room, which features yoga mats, zafu meditative cushions, music, and bookcases honoring the religious backgrounds of our young men. Library – the library has four bookcases of fiction and nonfiction books, a popular chess board, and a comfortable seating area that invites dialogue.