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Hampton spotlights seven 'credible messengers' after $2.4 million city investment in youth programs
Summary
Hampton honored seven violence interrupters for mentoring and reentry work. City staff said a 2022 $2,400,000 investment has reached roughly 480 young people through mentoring, restorative services and reentry supports.
The city of Hampton on Monday honored seven local "credible messengers" — people who use lived experience to mentor young people and intervene in violence — in a City Council Spotlight program that city staff said builds on a multi-year, city-funded effort to prevent youth violence.
"Tonight, we're going to recognize 7 remarkable individuals for their dedication to our youth as credible messengers or violence interrupters," Brian Marchese said as he introduced the program and described the city's effort to connect youth with mentoring, mental-health supports and reentry services. Marchese said the Hampton City Council invested $2,400,000 in 2022 to support grassroots organizations working with youth and that those efforts have reached about 480 young people across the city.
The program highlighted a range of interventions, from mentorship and job-readiness support to therapeutic and restorative services. Marchese described those measures as alternatives to violence, drugs and gangs and said they also focus on people returning from incarceration to ensure they have supports for reentry.
Mayor Chuck Tuck closed the event with an appeal for community involvement. "So once again, I make the appeal, to the men of this community," he said, urging more male mentors to step forward. The meeting adjourned shortly afterward and no formal votes or motions were recorded during the Spotlight presentation.
