The Healey-Driscoll administration recently announced funding awards through the Charles E. Shannon Jr. Community Safety Initiative, including new funds to support violence prevention in public housing sites.
The fiscal year 2025 Shannon Community Safety Initiative, Shannon CSI, is a state-funded grant program that awards yearly funds to support regional, multi-disciplinary program sites that take collaborative and evidence-based approaches to reduce youth and gang violence.
The grant program is a tool in helping communities build collaborative programs to improve safety and reduce gang activity.
A total of 15 program sites were awarded grants totaling approximately $11,179,673.
Both Holyoke and Chicopee included funds that will be used throughout their respective cities.
Boys and Girls Club of Greater Holyoke President and CEO Eileen Cavanaugh said the Holyoke/Chicopee Shannon Community Safety Initiative will partner with several organizations, such as the Boys and Girls Club of Greater Holyoke, Chicopee Boys and Girls Club, MassHire, Pa’Lante Transformative Justice and the Hampden County Sheriff’s Department to provide a range of programming and services to youth ages 10-24 years old at risk for gang involvement and youth violence in both Holyoke and Chicopee.
These services will include education support, workforce and career readiness, employment, mentoring, trauma-informed counseling and support, youth development activities, recreational activities, youth-police academies and integrated activities to reduce the risk of gang involvement.
The Holyoke/Chicopee Shannon Community Safety Initiative will also partner with the Holyoke Police Department and the Chicopee Police Department to monitor crime data, and target suppression efforts to create safer communities and neighborhoods.
This year, the initiative will also target new interventions in the Holyoke and Chicopee public housing communities to improve quality of life, reduce risks for children and youth and provide information and support to residents within the housing communities.
Boys and Girls Club of Chicopee Executive Director Jason Reed said Chicopee and Holyoke have partnered together to apply for funds from the Shannon Community Safety Initiative for many years, with the Boys and Girls Club of Chicopee taking the lead for the city.
Over the past several of those years, Reed said they have been able to bring in the Chicopee Police Department as another partner, and he explained they have done “substantial” work together to prevent youth violence, especially around gang activity.
The funding received by the club is used to support its teen programming which is offered after school, in the evening and summer programming specifically for young people ages 13-18.
Now running in the new teen center, Haven, the club provides teens with Boys and Girls Clubs of America evidence-based programs, workforce readiness, nutrition, physical fitness and academic support. Staff provide classroom instruction, coaching and mentoring.
The Boys and Girls Club partnership with the Chicopee Police Department has led to the creation of a Youth Cadet Academy, entering its seventh year.
Over 120 young people have participated in this week-long program, where they learn about each division in the department, and build positive relationships with the officers.
Chicopee Police Officer Travis Odiorne said, “It’s basically kids getting to work, interact with the officers outside of regular police duties and they get to do a lot of team building exercises together, they get to see all different aspects of our department, they see our dive team come out, they go on the boat,” Odiorne explained.
The Police Department also does an eight-week mentorship where 10 students are taught different kind of life skills.
Officers also participate in the club’s teen night programming, where they interact with teen members on the court, in the kitchen or in the classroom.
In 2024, the Boys and Girls Club of Chicopee expanded the program to include two block parties, one in the Chicopee Center neighborhood and one at the club in the Willimansett neighborhood.
“The objective was to bring residents and law enforcement together, breaking down barriers. We also launched a teen mentoring program, led by the department, where participants experienced such lessons as car maintenance, basic housekeeping skills, cooking and resume building. All these programs are slated to continue in 2025, thanks to the work and support of the club, the department, and the Shannon Community Safety Initiative,” Reed said.
There is a collaboration among the Shannon partners which allows partners to share resources, increase participation and target high-risk youth for services. Since 2019, the Holyoke/Chicopee Shannon Community Safety Initiative has seen a 25% decrease in simple assaults among young people ages 10-24.
Cavanaugh said, “Because of the gang and drug issues that plague both Holyoke and Chicopee, youth in Holyoke and Chicopee face unique challenges that require additional support and resources to help them overcome challenges and develop their skills. The Holyoke/Chicopee Shannon Community Safety Initiative helps to create and deliver safe spaces for both communities’ most vulnerable youth. The Holyoke/Chicopee Shannon Community Safety Initiative helps to reduce the frequency and intensity of conflicts among youth, improve the quality of peer and adult relationships, and reduce the risk of youth engaging in dangerous behaviors or gang activity.”
