A local organization is teaming up with a couple of state agencies to host a community listening session as a way to gather insight, opinions and possible solutions around the growing concern of violence the area.
Bridge to Peace Vance County is organizing “Breaking the Cycle: A Community-Driven Approach to Ending Violence,” which will take place Monday, Mar. 17 from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. at Southern Charm Event Center, 200 S. Garnett St. in Henderson.
Charles Turrentine, Jr. is one of the members of a steering committee responsible for planning the listening session,which will include representatives from the Governor’s Crime Commission and the N.C. Office of Violence Prevention.
Turrentine said a recent conversation with N.C. Dept. of Public Safety Deputy Director Robert Epstein is what got this started; “Vance County has come up on the radar at the state level,” he said on Tuesday’s TownTalk, when it comes to violence and crime.
Now it’s up to residents in the community to show up and share their thoughts on the matter. Turrentine said he would love to see kids, teenagers, young adults and older citizens at the listening session. He wants to hear from all segments of the community about what people see as challenges to overcome when talking about violence and about shifting the mindset and changing the narrative of Henderson and Vance County.
“We’re just going to listen,” Turrentine said. Vision boards will be used to capture the information generated at the listening session.
“We’re going to take all that information and we’re going to come back with legitimate ways to attack common issues that need to be addressed,” he said.
It’s easy to feel trapped in hopeless situations and Turrentine said this grassroots effort is one way to show the community that someone is trying to do something.
“We can’t arrest our way out of crime…if we can show other options,” he said, it could be a good step toward breaking the cycle of violence and crime.
He’s excited to have put in place the listening session, and although he said working with state officials has been challenging at times, “it’s a challenge I’m willing to take on.”
Identifying existing resources is one action item Turrentine hopes to share with the community. He also wants to rekindle the idea of neighbors helping neighbors. “If we can bring that back,” he said, it’s a step in the right direction that says “I see you and I do care.”
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