Summer program keeps children off the streets
Christine Trang | 7-9-2010 | Comments |
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About 24 Los Angeles parks, up from 16 last year, will participate in Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa's Summer Night Lights program this summer.The two dozen parks, located in some of Los Angeles' most troubled neighborhoods, will be open until midnight every Wednesday, Thursday, Friday and Saturday until Sept. 4. The program, which is part of the mayor's strategy to fight gang crime and violence, will offer tennis clinics, hip hop classes and basketball lessons.
"Summer Night Lights provides children with something other than the gang lifestyle," said Brian Smith, a police officer who supervised the event at Martin Luther King Jr. Park. "The event also brings the community together and allows children to play with one another."Cassandra Reyes, the senior recreation director in Los Angeles, said the summer-long event will bring a positive vibe to the often misunderstood South Los Angeles community.
Listen to Reyes speak about the program and its benefits:
At Martin Luther King Jr. Park, one Dorsey High School graduate, who will attend Loyola Marymount University in the fall, coached children in tennis.
Kenneth Ajeakwa discusses what tennis means to him and how his coach got him involved with the program:
Darnell James, a South Los Angeles resident, heard about the event from a friend. He applied, attended an interview and received a job at the late-night event. James said he "just takes names of participants down," but enjoys when the children want to come back.
James describes why he is at the event:
For one gang intervention specialist, the event hit close to home. Dennis Givens describes some of his gang intervention work:
Givens grew up in the neighborhood, and said he wanted to make sure the children enjoyed themselves and remained safe.
Givens speaks about his interest in the South Los Angeles community:
But Givens said there is one thing he dislikes about the program.
"It is only for the summer," Givens said. "When the program ends, a lot of people are depressed, the children wonder what happened, and then they begin to get involved in mischievous behaviors again."
In 2009, the program cost about $2.8 million, half of which came from private foundations and the rest from the city. This year, the mayor said he secured another $2.1 million in private contributions to increase the size of the initiative, the Los Angeles Times reported.
Tags: antonio villaraigosa crime prevention martin luther king jr. park south los angeles summer night lights