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A nonprofit organization in Butler County is using mentorship and after school programs to reduce incidents of gun violence among youth.
Hamilton Young People Empowered began six years ago, with its goal being to help teens become involved in the community and learn skills such as personal development, financial literacy and job readiness, said Pastor Shaquila Mathews, who founded the organization.
Since then, the nonprofit has evolved to offer sports, music, study and mentorship programs, becoming a refuge for teens who want to get away from negative home environments.
Mathews said many of those programs came from noticing needs in the community and noticing that teens don t really have a place to really be, because a lot of organizations they age out at like 12 and 13, so there s nowhere else for them to go.