PAINESVILLE, Ohio — Community and city leaders, activists and residents are coming together to stop violence from tearing Painesville apart.
Three people have been killed in the city over the past two months.
The first murder happened in November outside of Johnny Gringo’s Restaurant.
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Then last month, an 18-year-old and a 22-year-old were shot and killed inside Jackson Towers.
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Pastor Michael Jackson has called the city home his entire life.
“It’s very unusual,” said Jackson. “The old saying, it takes a village to raise a child, we need to get back to that."
Jackson is part of a coalition fighting back against the recent wave of violence.
“I’m part of a village that was village raised,” said Derrick L. Abney, Painesville City Council Member. “The elders took the time to teach me, and I took the time to listen.”
Pastors, city leaders and community organizers are uniting for a stop the violence discussion. It will take place Thursday at 6:30 p.m. at First Church Congregational, 22 Liberty Street in Painesville.
Reverend Chris Lee is President of the Lake County NAACP. He said the community needs to be at the meeting.
“These are our kids. These are the future doctors, these are the future lawyers, these are the future judges, these are the future law enforcement. These are our future,” said Lee.
“The beautiful thing about Painesville is no matter where people are, we have a tradition and a legacy of people coming back to help when needed,” said Ryan “Shug” Gilkerson, who is part of Thursday’s panel discussion.
