Euclid’s Hope Task Force, an organization founded in the wake of rising gun violence in 2022 in Euclid, saw over 60 people recently gather in the Euclid Public Library meeting room to talk about their experiences with gun violence in the community. While the Task Force has regular ‘Neighbor Nights’ meetings on the second and fourth Tuesday of each month, the meeting on Nov. 13 was the first of three Neighbors in Action listening sessions with additional sessions on Nov. 18 and 23. Doreen Lewis, a Euclid resident of over 20 years said that she wanted to come and see what other people had to say and hoped that she could gain some insight into what was going on in the broader community outside of the one she normally interacts with. “Most of the time I’m in the house so I’m not really privy to what’s going on around me so I’m just here to listen and hear… and see what we can do,” Lewis said. “Maybe I can join in and do some stuff. I want to see the city be safe for everybody. Because you used to be able to go out at night and take a jog, and I want to see people still be able to do those things.” She said that although personally she has not been a victim of gun violence, she is sympathetic to those who have. She said that the city seems to be struggling with providing affordable and adequate childcare services and in her view if kids had more things to do in the city, that the violence might be abated before it starts. “I’m here to listen first before I bring up anything because I’m not really sure what I would bring up,” Lewis said. “Nothing has been personal to me, but I take it personally through whatever happens to anybody around… I never would have thought I would see a 10-year-old carrying a gun and that’s the person who needs to be in childcare.” Community members listen to a participate before breakout sessions are formed. (Frank Mecham- The News-Herald.) The difference between their normal meetings and these listening sessions, is the data collection aspect, according to associate professor Mark Chupp of Western Reserve University Jack, Joseph and Morton Mandel School of Applied Social Sciences. Chupp, who is also the founding director of the Community Innovation Network, has provided resources for communities and “practitioners committed to strength-based change… Chupp’s research and practice over the past 30 years have focused on community building, community development, conflict transformation, and citizen participation,” according to the National Peace Academy’s website A board listing what makes Euclid safe, with post-its written by residents is seen on the back wall of the meeting room. (Frank Mecham- The News-Herald.) He said that the groups will split off with his interns and they will record the stories that are shared among the groups, transcript those stories, correlate the similarities and then share those results with the community at a future point. “We’re here to ensure that every community member has a voice in the process,” Chupp said. “And the process that we are leading is really three phases. We want to hear tonight, what peoples lived experiences on how gun violence has impacted them… and then we will develop them into a set of themes and the second phase is to actually do research around those themes. “Then we take what we learned from the community, and what we’ve learned are good strategies across the country, and we will share that research after the first of the year which will then lead into an envisioning and strategy session.” Community members listen to a speaker during a Neighbors in Action listening sessions at the euclid Library. (Frank Mecham- The News-Herald.) He said that gun violence doesn’t come out of a vacuum and that it can be stopped in the early stage if a community feels interconnected. He says that a strategy that has worked in other areas is increasing the relationships that individuals have with each other. “A safer community is really focused on prevention,” Chupp said. “In order to do that you don’t wait for a crime to occur… you build strong supportive relationships for young people and children, and you create an opportunity where everyone has an opportunity to contribute to their community. “And when everyone knows each other and benefits from the community, people take care of themselves.” He said that while law enforcement has a role to play in reducing gun violence, research that has been done in the field shows that it has to be a partnership instead of relying solely on punitive solutions, that the underlying causes of gun violence have to be addressed. Break out sessions of residents speaking on their personal stories of gun violence are seen in Euclid’s Public Library. (Frank Mecham- The News-Herald.) He said that part of these meetings are to see where the community stands in terms of resources, be it volunteers, youth organizations or even individual residents helping each other during times of need. “It has to be a partnership, law enforcement and police involvement, is critical to safety but it cannot do it alone,” Chupp said. “That’s why we are starting with the community because you need to know what the community can offer and build on and create to complement and strengthen the police. Financially you cannot have police on every corner on every street. It’s just not a viable, effective solution by itself and the research shows it. “I think the strategies will be a combination of public and community driven solutions and then we will look at resources of where those come from,” Chupp added. “Some will come from public sources, some will come from other sources, some come from community volunteers just stepping up and making a difference.” More information on Euclid Hope Task Forces sessions can be found at www.hopetaskforce.org.