Memphis Allies partner Red Door Urban Missions has deep roots in South Memphis

It is a quiet Monday morning—no immediate evidence of the gun violence that is rife in what Eric Watkins calls the “concrete jungle.”

Watkins, founder of Red Door Urban Missions, is sitting at a computer in his office, which is part of a reconfigured apartment unit in South Memphis. He is wearing a red T-shirt, the words from Psalms 112 edited to fit this urban environment:

Signs adorning the windows and walls speak other undeniable truths, such as, “Memphis is fun without guns!” and “Integrity is doing the right thing even when no one is looking.”

Watkins brought this ministry to the New Horizon Apartment complex seven years ago. Recently, Red Door Urban Missions began a partnership with Memphis Allies and will do outreach work as part of the initiative’s adult SWITCH (Support with Intention to Create Hope) program. As Memphis Allies expands, Red Door may also provide services in other areas of the city.

“This partnership makes a lot of sense,” said Susan Deason, executive director of Memphis Allies. “People in the community know Red Door’s work and our vision for reducing gun violence in the city is aligned.”

In this and other Memphis apartment complexes, Red Door offices are known by, well, the red doors. The stated mission: “holistically serving the disenfranchised and vulnerable across our beloved city of Memphis.”

That includes young people caught up in gang life, and mothers and grandmothers trying to protect their children from the perils of the streets.

“Red Door is like a halo, like a shield around things,” said Aja, a former resident of the apartment complex who still lives nearby and brings her children back to Red Door for programming. “If they weren’t here, there would be a lot more violence.”

Partnership a good fit

When Watkins’ outreach team brings people into Memphis Allies’ SWITCH programming, they gain access to life coaching, case management and clinical therapy.

“It allows me to provide more resources, but not have to wear all the different hats,” said Watkins, who has been working in the community for more than 25 years.

Because Red Door is already established, Watkins says the partnership with Memphis Allies is well timed. When he first came to the apartment complex, which has had its share of crime, he began by talking to the “shot callers” and built relationships with them.

“If I bring other people in before I’ve got the lay of the land, it’s dangerous,” he said.

Aja says the drug dealers who still call the apartment complex home do not give Watkins and his ministry any trouble because even they understand that people are being helped.

“They have the utmost respect for Red Door,” she said.

The voice of experience

Decades ago, Watkins did not always walk a straight path. Young men in the apartment complex first knew him as “OG,” and now as “Mr. Eric.”

“The gray hair, it works,” he said, smiling. “Some of them, I’m like their dad. Some, I’m like their grandfather.”

Shirley, an apartment complex resident, has grandchildren involved in Red Door programming. She not only appreciates the educational and spiritual instruction offered, but the emphasis on real-world safety.

“They talk with children about guns, about how if you see a gun don’t touch it,” she said. “Red Door has had a positive effect on my family and a lot of families. It helps children to know they can reach their dreams.”

And, Watkins says, should those children go astray as they grow into their teens and 20s, it is a huge advantage to have a foundational relationship in place to open a new dialogue.

“They’ll say,  ‘Oh, that’s Brother Eric, he’s one of us,” Watkins said, adding: “This is an oasis of hope.”

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