ST. LOUIS — A nonprofit in St. Louis said it saved 83 lives last year. Organizers said through de-escalation, they prevented those instances from becoming violent.
The key is getting embedded in some of St. Louis's most dangerous communities.
Monday, Better Family Life received a major investment to keep doing their work. The St. Louis Crime Commission awarded them more than $400,000.
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Adrian Martin walked along the 4200 block of Kennerly on Monday. He was doing his job with Better Family Life. He approached four teenagers he had never met.
"Next Monday, I'm going to be starting a 2K19 tournament do any of y'all play the game," he asked them about the NBA video game.
"Yeah I do," one responded.
"That's what's up," said another.
Why is a basketball video game tournament so important? Adrian Martin has walked these streets.
"If they don't have anything good to do, they will find themselves in a bad situation sooner or later," he said.
He knows first-hand.
"I grew up with a mom who was on drugs and a dad who was not in the picture. And I got into a lot of trouble," he said.
What saved him?
"A man talking to me every single day and never giving up hope."
However, the violence been happening too often in St. Louis. There have been more than 1200 shootings in the city this year through June. There were dozens over the 4th of July holiday.
"We're at a turning point or a tipping point. One of the two," said James Clark, the director of community outreach at Better Family Life.
Clark said the next 18 months will be very important and hopes it isn't a tipping point.
That's why he hired Adrian and 11 others as outreach workers. They are embedded in an area of town struggling with violence and serve as mentors and confidants to steer people down the right path.
Sometimes they act to simply give them that chance.
"They let me know they were in fear of losing their life," he said.
Martin said there was a young man who approached him in January and said he was afraid someone was going to kill him. Martin said he worked with the young man to get him into safe places in St. Louis. Eventually, he helped ensure he could be relocated out of the city.
He said it's part of his job as an outreach worker: to make sure everyone in the community is safe and to de-escalate conflicts.
With the more than $400,000 investment from the St. Louis Regional Crime Commission, Better Family Life will hire more outreach workers. Right now at 12, the plan is to hire five more, according to Clark.
"That gives us the ability to reach more families," he said.
However, Clark said he needs 50 for the whole city. It's something he hopes to build up to.
Clark said he is looking for two types of people to fill the role as outreach workers: ex-offenders and military veterans.
He said ex-offenders have the street credibility that they can go into any community to make an impact.
He said military vets have the skill and professionalism to turn a neighborhood around.
To apply for an outreach worker position or to get involved in Better Family Life, click here.