Back on the Block: Bringing The Village Home

We are thrilled to announce that ReWired For Change, in partnership with Zion Baptist Church, The Transformation Team, the Baltimore City Police Department, the Oliver Street Community Center and New Visions Youth Services, will move begin a new Initiative, “Back on The Block: Bringing the Village Home.” As a part of the initiative, this summer we will be moving into a row house, The Village House, in the heart of the Oliver Street community.

The Village House will be located at 1430 Lanvale Street, two doors down from Zion Baptist. Pastor Prentice, who was immediately attracted to the idea, donated the space to us -- on the spot – which will enable us to provide youth activities ranging from basketball and flag football, to organic gardening, cooking, visual arts and “step” classes. In addition, The Village House will provide community advocacy workshops, yoga and meditation instruction for adults and youth and will recruit and engage seniors in reading to the tiny tots.

Major Melvin Russell, Commander of Baltimore’s Eastern District Police Unit and Head of The Transformation Team, has expended massive amounts of his personal time and energy to the project. Major Russell got The Transformation Team involved early on and has engaged the Eastern District Police Neighborhood Services Unit to help with outreach and supervision.

A street based mentorship program, spearheaded by RWFC’s Ted Sutton and Billy Stanfield of New Visions Youth Services, will operate during the evening hours. The mentorship program’s focus will be to engage street involved youth and young adults and connect them to the services The Village House has to offer.

We are also proud to announce that The Village House will also be the new headquarters for ReWired For Change and its ReWired For Life! Program which has been facilitated by Greg Shamsuddin Carpenter since last summer.

Email us to at info@rewiredforchange.com to join the COALITION FOR A BETTER BALTIMORE and volunteer for this exciting effort.

IT’S YOUR NEIGHBORS, YOUR CITY AND YOUR RESPONSIBILITY --- DO SOMETHING ABOUT IT!!

Coalition for a Better Baltimore

This Spring, ReWired for Change is starting the Coalition for a Better Baltimore, an alliance of Baltimore citizens ages 35-50 who have come together to dedicate their time and talents to support not only ReWired for Change, but also various equity initiatives throughout the city. The Coalition consists of young business leaders, professionals from a variety fields, and community members.

Regardless of race, religion, political party affiliation or economic status, this Coalition is united behind a common cause: to create a better Baltimore with less violence, responsible development, and better quality of life for all who live, work and play in Baltimore.

Want to find out more? Contact us!