In many Cleveland neighborhoods, you don’t have to go far to see the impact of violent crime.

“A lot of people are saying ‘enough is enough.’ Too many children are dying. Too many people’s lives are being taken,” said Michelle Bell. 

Bell has lived with it since 2019.

“February 10 it will be five years, and no one has been brought to justice,” she said.

Months after her son was shot while driving through his neighborhood with a friend, she started M-PAC Cleveland, a group committed to supporting surviving families of gun violence.

“I don’t want another mother to feel the pain, and [I asked,] what can I do to be a part of that solution?” Bell said.

“We looked at everything from geography to demographics to type of program. Was it prevention-focused?” Sonya Pryor-Jones said.

M-PAC is one of 29 organizations getting grants from the Cleveland Neighborhood Safety Fund’s first round of $1 million. The city announced the creation of the fund in October in response to an uptick of violence in Cleveland , especially among youth and young adults.

Pryor-Jones is Cleveland’s Chief of Youth and Family Success and a member of the advisory committee that determined which of the 150 applicants would receive funding.

“We know that they are pushing up against long-term systemic issues. Poverty is a real issue when it comes to violence,” she said. “With the support of these finances as well as with bringing these different intervention organizations together to better coordinate their services, we’re going to see long-term a decrease in violence and healthier communities across our city.”

‘Let’s work together to solve this’

“It’s extremely important. Have you seen the rates?” said El Jay’em, who works with Together We Rise, a group that is receiving $45,000 this year.

Jay’em said the money will help finance efforts to build a clubhouse and respond to situations in the community that don’t require police.

“We have both lost people close to use due to gun violence. Again, Project Ripple is for the people by the people. We’re not third parties. We understand the pain. We understand the grief that people are going through. That’s why we know the resources that are needed. We are from the community,” she said.

More than 150 people were killed in 2023, according to police. Most victims are between 18 and 33 years old, and an increasing number are children. All of it is too much for Jay’em and Bell.

“Let’s work together to solve this. Let’s work together to try to prevent it,” Bell said.

The safety fund includes $10 million in American Rescue Plan Act money  invested and housed in the Cleveland Foundation. The plan is to distribute $1 million each year to organizations working to reduce violent crime.