Project Summary

In Aurora IL, 1000 citizens talk about violence in their community and take action. Citizens will hold a City-Wide, Day-of -Dialogue and Wrap-Up/Action Forum. They will also add on-line dialogue formats to www.acstudycircles.org and www.manyyoungvoices.org

About me

I hold a graduate degree in communication theory and have been involved in the community for 40 years, many of them as a volunteer. In 1995 I became aware of Study Circles Resource Center and felt with changes in the community's demographics we needed to start talking with one another. I began a program focused on racial and ethnic relationships and issues as a volunteer at the Aurora YWCA with support from SCRC. In 1997 20 community members from various sectors came together to address our fate and formed a non-profit organization to sustain the work. For 10 years we have been committed to the inculcation of dialogue in the community. We have laid solid ground-work with diverse citizens and now are more issue/action driven. We have a solid group of volunteers, have done alot of social marketing, trained 250 facilitaors, enlisted the buy-in of the Mayor and others in government and established our credibility as a committed and effective group. Our team for the proposed project includes partnerships with the City of Aurora, United Way, Aurora Cares, Weed and Seed, AAUW, Fox Valley Girl Council, YWCA, The Center for Community Empowerment, Aurora University, Waubonsee Community College, three school districts, several private faith-based schools, and many faith communities. Community financial resources are strained and our entire program is now in jeopardy. We need your help to take this important step toward community driven action related to safety.