At a packed State House rally supporting the Shannon Community Safety Imitative, State Secretary of Public Safety Andrea Cabral and City Manager Jay Ash stood among those addressing attendees. The Shannon Grant distributes a combined $6.5 million this year across 30 communities, funding prevention, intervention and enforcement work designed to create safer streets and better prospects for young people.
The Shannon Community Safety Initiative has operated since 2006, channeling resources to Massachusetts communities working to address youth violence, substance abuse and gang activity through coordinated regional and multi-disciplinary strategies. Last week, as advocates assembled at the State House to push for continued funding, City Manager Jay Ash emerged as a leading voice in that effort.
Standing before a crowded State House hearing room, Ash made his case forcefully: “If you care about community and care about the young people in your community, Shannon is critical to you. Our legislators know that and have been supporters of Shannon in the past. However, times are tough and dollars are tight, so we all need to walk these halls and remind our legislators that Shannon is making a difference in our communities and it needs to be refunded.”
An early champion of Shannon—the initiative named for the late Senator Charles E. Shannon, Jr., a legislative advocate for anti-crime initiatives—Ash has spent years building momentum. He established a local coalition encompassing Revere, Everett, Medford, Malden, Somerville and Winthrop to coordinate regional Shannon-funded efforts.
“We’ve broken down communication barriers within our boundaries and among our communities,” Ash remarked following the hearing. “And, along the way, our collaborations are making a difference in traditional policing work, as well as community-based solutions to youth violence and drug abuse.”
Information sharing among police and community advocates has become central to Shannon’s work, fostering better coordinated responses and collaborative crime prevention strategies alongside intervention when prevention proves insufficient.
“Shannon has been the impetus for a solidification of our relationships with our community partners and an enhancement of our joint responses to those issues that confront us,” noted Chief Brian Kyes.
According to Chelsea’s police chief, Shannon communities have developed regular cooperation among officers focused on identifying shared challenges, understanding root causes and executing coordinated patrols across identified problem areas.
“Crime knows no boundaries,” stated Sen. Sal DiDomenico, reflecting his previous backing of Shannon initiatives. “It’s therefore critical that we take a regional approach to dealing with it. I know that Chelsea’s efforts to work with its partners are making a difference on both crime and in providing enhancements for our young people.”
In Chelsea specifically, Shannon resources support additional police presence, prevention programming at the Boys & Girls Club and intervention services delivered through Roca.
“All valuable initiatives, and that’s why so many of us are so supportive of Shannon,” explained Rep. Gene O’Flaherty.
“Our police say the effort is working, and when we talk to community providers they all sing Shannon’s praises,” noted Rep. Kathi-Anne Reinstein. “Making sure that Shannon survives another tough budget year has to be our priority.”
Regarding prospects for the fiscal year beginning July 1st, Ash expressed confidence about Shannon’s funding renewal, though he declined to project specific amounts. “The Legislature has so many competing interests and continuing budget turmoil,” Ash pointed out. “Shannon provided twice as much just four years ago as it did this year, so the program is not reaching as far as we would like. That’s why we go up to the State House; to continue to advocate for the program because communities like Chelsea and, especially, young people who live in places like Chelsea need the funding to support healthy alternatives to what otherwise could be.”
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At a packed State House rally supporting the Shannon Community Safety Imitative, State Secretary of Public Safety Andrea Cabral and City Manager Jay Ash stood among those addressing attendees. The Shannon Grant distributes a combined $6.5 million this year across 30 communities, funding prevention, intervention and enforcement work designed to create safer streets and better prospects for young people.