Local nonprofit works to help mentor young adults, teens

MEMPHIS, Tenn. (WMC) - Hope Activated is one of many nonprofits in Memphis working to make a change in the community through mentorship.

Founder Randy Taylor says mentorship is the key to a safer Memphis.

“We have to continually pour into the generation that’s up and coming because those who are mentored, they will mentor.”

Taylor says he wants to change the minds and actions of young people, amid rising crime in Memphis, specifically among teens.

“You can’t stand on the sidelines and think that you can make a change,” he said.

As a Memphis police officer, Taylor’s seen it all, which is part of what drives him to mentor.

“I think we have an obligation and I think we have a duty and a responsibility to this generation to give back to it because they are the future,” he said.

Mentorship is extremely personal to Taylor.

His oldest son is serving a 20-year sentence on two counts of attempted first-degree murder.

His middle son became so deeply involved in gang violence, it cost him his life at just 19 years old.

“Some people might look at that as a disqualifier with my two sons and the route and the paths that they chose,” Taylor said. “But I see it as the number one qualifier because I know the impact that can happen from violence and gang violence.”

Taylor’s experiences on and off the job help him effect change. Changes he sees firsthand in the young men and women he works with.

“We give them something here and we hope, and we pray they take these good elements and good nuggets back home and share it amongst their families,” Taylor said. “The whole objective is to bring them to a higher level of thinking.”

The nonprofit’s programs include its young father’s program, a driver’s license program, along with financial literacy programs.

Another program focuses on the consequences of gun violence, among others.

Taylor says one mentor who spent time in prison shared with students the ripple effects of crime.

“You can learn just as good from the negative as you can from the positive,” he said.

Hope Activated mentor and Memphis Police officer Stephen Owens says his goal is to help young people not lose hope in themselves, no matter their situation.

“Each day that God has given us, there’s another day for us to provide change whether it’s mentally, emotionally, spiritually, financially educationally ―there’s still hope,” Owens said.

“If we want to build a positive future (a successful future) for the city of Memphis, then we have to give time to the youth and the young people that are coming up now―in order to make this city a better place to live,” Taylor said.

Hope Activated is located at 988 Mississippi Boulevard.

You can learn more about getting your child involved by clicking here.

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