Institute for the Study & Practice of Nonviolence - Remembering David Cartagena

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!

WPRI - "Remembering a Providence Street Worker"

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

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. 

Providence Journal: He walks the streets to broker peace

by Edward Fitzpatrick, ProJo columnist
01:00 AM EST on Thursday, December 25, 2008

Peace.

It’s a notion we see on Christmas cards and bumper stickers. It’s something we all hope for. But for Teny O. Gross, it’s more than a Hallmark greeting or a quaint idea. It’s the goal he pursues every day on the streets of Providence.

Gross is a street worker, a peacemaker. In this age of “Bring ’em on!” bravado, peacemakers might seem out of step — soft in a hard-line era.

"A Messenger of Providence and Peace"

The Diocese of Providence's Office of Black Catholic Ministry profiled Institute Streetworker Dimky Edouard in their November 2008 newsletter. View/downlaod the PDF here.

"In the inner city, a summer job can be a lifesaver"

In the inner city, a summer job can be a lifesaver

The Providence Journal

Friday, July 11, 2008
By W. Zachary Malinowski, Journal Staff Writer

PROVIDENCE

A part-time summer job may have saved Anthony Ericastilla’s life.

The teenager struggled through his freshman year at Hope High School. He skipped school, hung out with gang members and was disrespectful to his parents, immigrants from Guatemala who had moved to the city’s Silver Lake neighborhood in search of a better life.

Anthony’s mother, Corina Barraza, was at wit’s end. She turned to the Institute for the Study & Practice of Nonviolence, in South Providence, for help. The institute welcomed Barraza and the staff expressed concern for her plight. They assigned three streetworkers to her son and helped him get a job in the agency’s Beloved Community Summer Jobs Program.

"Peace gang: Two rival gang members return to the streets to play the role of peacemakers"

Two Institute Streetworkers are featured in the Providence Journal, describing the challenges and the hopes they have for their communities.

The story includes interviews with Streetworkers Ray, Tou and Executive Director Teny Gross, as well as previous stories on Streetworkers program manager Ajay Benton ("He gave up crime to save others from gangs") and Senior Streetworker, Sareth Tony Kim ("Once he killed; now he turns to peacemaker").

Check out the Providence Journal's multimedia page on Ray and Tou...

or,

Download the PDF here.

Providence Business News: Streetworkers do their part to limit gang violence

Social justice
Streetworkers do their part to limit gang violence

PBN PHOTO/MATTHEW HEALEY
TENY GROSS, executive director of the Institute for the Study and Practice of Nonviolence, talks to Institute “Streetworker” Larry Davis, right, and Brandon Ferrell.

By Denise Perreault
PBN Staff Writer

Barry Preston, managing director of the Armory Revival Co. on Westminster Street, credits a dedicated group of young people with improving the safety of what was a tough part of Valley Street in Providence’s Olneyville neighborhood.

“Four years ago, we renovated an old mill there, in an environment that was not thought to be safe and we were concerned about that,” he said last week. Col. Dean Esserman, Providence’s police chief, referred him to a group called the Streetworkers. Preston said his business then teamed up with educators at the Oliver H. Perry Middle School to find the funds to bring the Streetworkers to Olneyville.

Institute awarded $352,000 in federal appropriations

A warm thank you to US Representatives Patrick Kennedy and James Langevin!

A curb on street violence
Providence Journal
By W. Zachary Malinowski
Journal Staff Writer
Tuesday, March 25, 2008

PROVIDENCE — Sal Monteiro Jr., a streetworker at the Institute for the Study & Practice of Nonviolence, had a simple message yesterday for the bankers, educators, police officers, politicians and social workers who gathered at the South Side Recreation Center.

“Nonviolence is not for cowards,” he said. “It’s for courageous people. We are a small group, but we are committed.”

Monteiro was one of several speakers at yesterday’s announcement that the nonprofit agency had received $352,000 in federal appropriations to continue its battle against gang violence and help troubled youth in some of the city’s worst neighborhoods.

U.S. Representatives Patrick Kennedy and James Langevin were both on hand to praise the institute and the streetworkers.

Lifespan: supporting our Streetworkers' health and our work

from Lifespan's 2006 Annual Report (emphasis added by us):

THE INSTITUTE FOR THE STUDY AND PRACTICE OF NONVIOLENCE
Ending Violence, Vendettas and Vengeance

There are roughly forty people in the emergency department who are anticipating news about a gunshot victim. Most are family and friends, but some are rival gang members. The atmosphere is tense.

The medical team is working to save the teenager’s life. Social workers are doing their best to comfort the family. Security is trying to calm the agitated crowd. Then, a small group of young adults enters the building. At that moment, the crowd visibly relaxes. The streetworkers have arrived.

Providence Phoenix: Providence: safer than you think?

Violent crime is down, unlike in many us cities. Can the good news last?
By: IAN DONNIS
5/18/2007

The killing season in America is about to begin.

Every year, as summer approaches in US cities, violent crime spikes as predictably as the arrival of Memorial Day cookouts. The bloodshed is well under way in some places, including Boston, which after enjoying remarkable success in reducing violence in the late 1990s, has recorded 20 murders so far this year, after 75 last year, mostly in the city’s poorest neighborhoods.

Providence, by contrast, has bucked a trend in which the number of violent crimes is increasing in many American cities. There were 11 murders in the city in 2006 — half the number of the previous year — and the fewest since 1971. And while Providence this week experienced its third homicide of 2007, its number of major crimes dropped 30 percent from 2002 to 2006, according to police figures, and the most serious violent crimes fell by 27 percent over the same period.

A play about life in jail; told by those who know

Institute Streetworker, Erick Betancourt, plays Caz!

1000 lbs Guerilla Theatre is producing "House of Death" at Perishable Theatre (95 Empire Street, Providence) May 3rd – 5th and 9th – 13th.

Remaining shows:
Thursday 5/10, Friday 5/11 & Saturday 5/12 at 8pm
Saturday 5/13 at 2pm (with a discussion period after the play - great for kids to attend)
Sunday 5/13  at 7pm.

What happens when the Grim Reaper gets locked in prison?  He meets rappers Wisdom (Inphynit) and Masai-Do (Amos Hamrick), discusses addiction with Billy (Mike Messier), and contemplates humanity with Chino (Sokeo Ros), a Cambodian political prisoner.

Playing a triple role as Judge/Lawyer/Guard, actor T.J. Paolino says he is trying to “Get out of the way of the play,” the new mantra for the troupe. The comic relief is led by Jerz (JD Gonzalez) with his Ring Announcer antics and beat box skills.

This show marks the playwriting debut of Guerilla director Bruce Reilly. Written while in prison, House of Death borrows its title from Fyodor Dostoyevsky’s non-fictional account, of his own years in the Russian gulag.

Tickets are available at arttixri.com. Or call 401-621-6123.
General admission is $15, and Group Rates (6 or more) and Students are $12.   Special Student Group Rate is $8.

For more information: 1000lbsguerilla@gmail.com or Asst. Producer Jessica Russillo, 401/265-4721 or Artistic Director Bruce Reilly, 401/286-1507

Chicago - Street Workers are key "violence interrupters"

Our note: the Providence Street Workers are doing these same activities. We're glad to see allies across the country. And, we're always thrilled when academia endorses the work of front line practitioners like street workers.

The violence virus
Boston Globe Op-Ed
By Susan C. Scrimshaw  |  April 22, 2007

IN URBAN areas across our nation, hardly a day goes by without news of a shooting. Many such incidents start with a rash argument between young people armed with guns. The typical response, when shootings increase, is to enhance law enforcement, but that is only part of the solution.

This deadly cycle of shootings is a public-health epidemic. By approaching it as such -- as a contagious disease of underlying expectations and pressures, one that is both treatable and preventable -- we can make significant progress toward halting it.