When asked about reaching East End youth and breaking the cycle of violence, Jose Diaz of the Homewood YMCA said there is a need to create safe space. Not far away in Larimer another institution is working to do that on multiple scales: The Kingsley Association.
Kingsley, under the leadership of Executive Director Malik Bankston, has developed partnerships and designed programming designed to improve Black youth, Black families and Black communities.
The facility itself houses a state-of-the-art swimming pool and gymnasium to address physical wellbeing, education and training programs, and family services to address mental and emotional wellbeing, and is playing a key role in redeveloping the entire Larimer community.
It is a holistic approach.
“Oftentimes, it’s not easy to see how all these aspects of people’s lives are connected together. People tend to address issues in silos—jobs, housing, education, violence,” Bankston said. “Part of what we’ve been trying to do is draw those connections, in all those aspects. I think you have to, if you’re going to make an impact.”
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