Institute for the Study & Practice of Nonviolence

WPRI: Providence Gets 10 New Streetworkers

PROVIDENCE, R.I. (WPRI) - A local organization is getting 10 new streetworkers to help make neighborhoods safe.

Audio from David Cartagena's funeral

These are AAC files with the ".M4A" extension. They will play in iTunes.

Homily by Father Ray Malm (M4A, 9.6 MB)

Eulogy by ISPN Executive Director Teny Gross (M4A, 18.8 MB)

"On Angels' Wings" (M4A, 5.8 MB)

Providence Journal: Hundreds attend funeral of nonviolence advocate David J. Cartagena

Friday, June 5, 2009
By W. Zachary Malinowski

Journal Staff Writer

PROVIDENCE — David J. Cartagena, a legendary streetworker and tireless advocate of nonviolence, was remembered Thursday morning as a bridge builder among warring youth across the city.

About 300 family members, friends, admirers and dignitaries poured into St. Michael the Archangel Church to say their final goodbyes to Cartagena, a former gang member and criminal, who turned his life around and became one of the city’s best-known advocates for peace.

Cartagena, 38, was a senior streetworker for the Institute for the Study of Peace and Nonviolence, on the city’s South Side. He was killed early Sunday morning in a multi-car crash on Route 95, near the Providence Place mall that remains under investigation by the state police.

The Rev. Raymond Malm, who celebrated the funeral Mass, told the gathering that Cartagena had devoted his life to helping others.

“The souls of the just are in the hands of God,” Malm said. “David dedicated his life to peace. Remember, this is a movement. This will change the world.”

ProJo.com slide show on David's funeral

Providence Police Chief Daniel Esserman escorts the mother of the late David J. Cartagena into St. Michael's Church.

photo by The Providence Journal/Bob Thayer

See the rest of the slideshow here

WRNI: A Peacemaker Remembered

 "Almost half of the children in Providence grow up in poverty. David Cartagena grew up poor in Rhode Island's capital, and became a criminal and gang member. But that's not how he'll be remembered. WRNI's Ian Donnis reports on how Cartagena changed not just his own life, but many of those with whom he came into contact."

Download / hear their report here (MP3, 2 MB)

Memorial to David on MySpace

14 year-old Kimberly Ramirez, a student at the Oliver H. Perry Middle School, was moved to set up a memorial page to David, including a hip hop tribute by fellow student -  15 year-old - Jose Avila. The page has many nice comments by other young people too. Check it out here.

The Institute for the Study and Practice of Nonviolence loses a great friend, David Cartagena

The Institute for the Study and Practice of Nonviolence is mourning the terrible loss of our beloved friend and peacemaker, David Cartagena, whose love, mentoring, intelligence and humor changed lives, inspired, and reminded us how the most loving and exceptional person can come from the hardest of circumstances.

We'd like to thank you all for your outpouring of support during this difficult time for the Institute family and the youth of Providence. (As a sampling, read the 50+ testimonials ("comments") here on this site about David's impact.)

The David Cartagena Memorial Fund has been established to help at-risk youth. To contribute to this fund, please make checks payable to the Institute for the Study and Practice of Nonviolence and write David Cartagena Memorial Fund in the memo line.
 
About David
David Cartagena of Providence, a Senior Streetworker at the Institute for the Study and Practice of Nonviolence, passed away this weekend after a car accident in Providence.  He was 38 years old.  He is survived by his parents and a young daughter.

David Cartagena had worked at the Institute as a nonviolence trainer and a Streetworker since 2005, and was taking courses towards a Bachelors Degree at Rhode Island College's School of Social Work.  He sat on several steering committees working on issues affecting children, youth and families.  Recently, David was the subject of a documentary photo essay by Rishwanth Jayapaul, called "Serving a Purpose," which is visible at http://viiphoto.ning.com/video/serving-a-purpose.

David was a former gang member who turned his life around and dedicated himself to the cause of nonviolence. In recent years, he was recognized by law enforcement and community organizations as a skilled mediator and valuable partner.  A gifted public speaker and storyteller, he was sought after as a speaker in nonviolence trainings.  He testified before Congress on gang intervention strategies and has worked with professionals in Connecticut, Guatemala, Massachusetts, Detroit, Michigan and Portland, Oregon on ways to curb youth violence. 

 "David was an exceptional youth worker and an excellent human being.  He made a huge impact on the community he loved to serve.  As his Institute family, we hope his impact will continue to be felt for a long time to come.  We will not soon recover from the heartbreak of this tragedy. Our thoughts are with his family."-Teny Gross, Executive Director.

Further tributes about David's remarkable life can be found on our website at www.nonviolenceinstitute.org.
 
We love you David.

Photo credits:  Richard Kizirian - David Cartagena and his daughter Jada at Waterfire event for the Institute; black & white photo by Rishwanth Jaypaul from his photo essay on David.

A poster in honor of David

From an interview for the Tufts Institute for Global Leadership Discourse journal.

Thanks to Heather Barry, Associate Director, Institute for Global Leadership, Tufts University for putting this together!

Clicking the image on the left will launch a new window with a 948KB JPG file. This version will fit on 11" x 17" paper.

A electronic copy (not a printout) of the  full-size version of the poster is 3 feet x 5 feet and is available as a 6.7MB PDF upon request. Write to hresko@gmail.com for an email copy. Sorry for any confusion!

Read what the Institute for Global Leadership wrote about David here.

Rishwanth Jaypaul's video slide show on David - narrated by David

Thanks Rishwanth!

NBC 10 & ABC 6: "Office on the Streets" & more

NBC 10: Crash victim was community activist

ABC 6: HOPING ITS A DREAM: Family of Nonviolence Worker Killed Speaking Out

ABC 6: OFFICE ON THE STREETS: Nonviolence Worker Lived to Change Young Lives

ABC 6: Coworkers Speak About Man Killed in Early Morning Crash

WPRI - "Remembering a Providence Street Worker"

Statement of Mayor David N. Cicilline

"Today we lost a great hero in our community with the tragic death of David J. Cartagena. David was a dedicated Streetworker with the Institute for the Study and Practice of Nonviolence who focused relentlessly on improving the lives of young people in Providence. His leadership skills, dedication and profound commitment to the youth of our city served as an inspiration for all of us. On behalf of the residents of Providence, I am extremely grateful for his service to our community. Our thoughts and prayers are with his entire family during this difficult time."

Our official statement on David's passing

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE, May 31, 2009            CONTACT:     Teny Gross, 401-639-7406
PDF version
David Cartagena, Senior Streetworker,
Passes Away at 38

David Cartagena of North Providence, a Senior Streetworker at the Institute for the Study and Practice of Nonviolence, passed away this weekend after a car accident in Providence.  He was 38 years old.  He is survived by his parents and a young daughter.

Today at 1:00 pm, a basketball tournament will be played in David’s honor at Davey Lopes Recreation Center, 227 Dudley Street, Providence.  This tournament was organized by the Institute’s Community Leaders, a group of youth training in leadership development and community organizing.  The tournament is one of the program’s culminating events.

Providence Journal on David's passing

Providence gang member turned nonviolence activist killed in Route 95 crash
June 1, 2009
By W. Zachary Malinowski
Journal Staff Writer

PROVIDENCE — David J. Cartagena, a senior street worker for the Institute for the Study & Practice of Nonviolence, had put his troubled past behind him. The former member of the Almighty Latin King Nation youth gang had spent plenty of time in the Adult Correctional Institutions and, in his teens, in the state Training School.

His life changed in 2005 when he joined the staff of the nonprofit agency and became one of its most effective leaders in combating gang violence and youth crime.

Shortly after 2 a.m. Sunday, Cartagena, 38, was killed in a chain-reaction collision involving his vehicle and three others on Route 95 near the Providence Place mall. Two of the other drivers face alcohol-related charges.

WPRI coverage

Harvard Magazine on David & Teny: "Taking It to the Streets"

Harvard Magazine profiled alumnus Teny Gross and Senior Streetworker David Cartagena in their January-February 2009 issue. Click here to view/download the PDF.

Taking It to the Streets
Teny Gross teaches kids nonviolence.

by Nell Porter Brown

David C. grew up in Providence, Rhode Island. With no father around and a drug-addicted mother, he  moved through foster homes, gathering a fragile sense of worth from a gang of friends. “All I aspired to was being important on the street,” he says. “There was nothing about a future.” He spent five years in juvenile detention and a few in prison, and still has a reputation among local cops for living up to his nickname, “Devious,” for once escaping through the police-station roof.

At 37, he is still hanging out with the kids—in the schools, at their homes, the hospital, or the mall. But as a street worker with the city’s Institute for the Study and Practice of Nonviolence, he now prevents the very violence he once provoked. 

David Cartagena: 2005 graduate of Institute's Nonviolence Trainers

from the Providence Journal:

Volunteers learn ways to promote nonviolence
Trixy Ferrell, one of 14 graduates, was motivated to get involved and take the training class after her 18-year-old son was slain in April.

Friday, August 26, 2005

BY KAREN A. DAVIS
Journal Staff Writer

PROVIDENCE -- Dressed in a light blue dress shirt and faded blue jeans, David Cartegena stood before the City Hall audience overcome with emotion and temporarily speechless.

It had been a while since he cried, he confessed to the crowd. And, he didn't know what specifically prompted him to do so yesterday.