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Partners in ministry working with area youth
Published November 26, 2009
With juvenile crime rates unexpectedly on the rise in Kerr County, one area non-profit is stepping to the forefront to help identify at-risk youth before they become a statistic.
Partners in Ministry features several programs aimed at Kerr County youth, including C.O.R.E, a program to help build 40 developmental assets considered necessary for young adults to thrive. Some of the assets include family support, adult relationships, service to others, school engagement, decision making and self-esteem building.
“When you increase assets, risky behavior declines,” said Bill Blackburn, president of Partners in Ministry. “We are involving schools in Kerr County, churches, businesses, 4-H, YMCA and Big Brothers Big Sisters. We need to get the community behind and aware of young people, and that takes a long time to develop.”
Other main programs include vision.youth, which employs a street youth minister to reach kids that might not be found otherwise.
“We have a street youth minister, Tony Vela, who works with kids on the street,” Blackburn said. “He’s done a great job — it’s really worked well. I’m convinced things like this program lay the foundation for great things to come.”
Blackburn said the number one contributor he sees that is affecting the rise in juvenile crime is economic issues.
“Law enforcement officers are telling me they are seeing more kids with less supervision,” he said. “We see a lot of single and two-parent families working several jobs to make ends meet. We see single moms working three parttime jobs.”
“A really sad situation is seeing more parents who don’t take care of themselves or their kids,” he added.
Blackburn said he has seen a rise in drug and alcohol abuse among parents, and this is contributing to youth getting into trouble.
“Addictions and abuse are real prevalent,” he said. “We are starting to see the poverty level rising at the elementary school level. With some schools, we are looking at more than 60 percent of children getting free lunches. That is a significant increase in the last five years. If economy is related to crime, Kerrville has a large, low wage, service economy that is growing.”
The majority of what Partners in Ministry is doing is preventative through supporting area non-profits. Blackburn said support of the local non-profits is critical to reducing the juvenile crime rate.
“Kerrville always has been very generous to non-profits, and they need continued support to help kids,” Blackburn said. “The Salvation Army, Big Brothers Big Sisters, mentoring programs, YMCA and 4-H all are really, really important.”
Along with those programs, Blackburn said the local juvenile board, led by county judge Pat Tinley, also combats the problem from a different angle. Although the board encourages youth after they have committed offenses, they handle their cases by connecting them with positive organizations.
“They have to deal with the trouble the kids are in, but they also look at so many ways to get them help in any kind of community program. We are well served when they try and place that child,” Blackburn said.
Blackburn said that while Partners in Ministry isn’t duplicating what other non-profits are doing, “we all work together for a common goal.”
Non-profit organizations helping youth in Kerr County
YMCA: 896-8000
Young Life: 896-7565
Big Brothers Big Sisters: 257-2447
Baptist Child and Family Services: 896-0993
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