We are heartbroken over the senseless act of gun violence on Wednesday that claimed the life of a Memphis Allies...
Memphis Allies Posts
Most Recent Memphis Allies Posts
The Means and Skills for Success
SWITCH Youth participant ‘Jaden’ has the ‘means and the skills’ for success Jaden was not in a good place when he...
This is ‘Heart Work’
This is ‘heart work,’ says Memphis Allies SWITCH supervisor His name is Earve Mathis, but around Memphis Allies’ South...
More Memphis Allies Posts
Meet Regional Supervisor Aviance
Right where she is supposed to be, Aviance Brown-Austin was meant for this work Aviance Brown-Austin was born to a 15-year-old mother, and partially raised by a youngish grandmother. “Technically, I raised myself,” she said. “Along with the streets.” Aviance made her...
Self-Care Isn’t Selfish
The danger of being on the front lines is never just immediate. Sometimes, it’s the collateral damage that hits home. This is true for combat veterans – many of whom suffer from post-traumatic stress syndrome (PTSD), for law enforcement, for firefighters and...
A ‘Peacekeeping’ Mission
Memphis Allies: A ‘peacekeeping’ mission in progress Recently, Antonio Dowdy’s phone rang in the middle of the night. Dowdy, as a Memphis Allies outreach specialist, works to establish relationships with young people most at risk for gun violence. That means...
Ashley Furniture and The Grizzlies
Community Spotlight: Ashley’s and the Grizzlies give children a special night at FedEx Forum Ashley’s Hope to Dream initiative partnered with the Memphis Grizzlies and Memphis Allies to bring beds to the children and siblings of Memphis Allies participants and...
Training Never Stops
At Memphis Allies, the training never stops Every day in Memphis, businesses provide their employees with continuing education and new training. It’s a temperature check of sorts. How are our employees doing? Are they consistently applying best practices? Where can...
Meet Christina
Behind the Scenes with Memphis Allies: Christina Gann, a guiding light When the Memphis Allies initiative to reduce gun violence launched in 2021, the enormity of the challenge was understood: People on the front lines would be working with a high-risk population,...
Meet Randy
Elite Boxing and Randy Dixon Partner with SWITCH Youth Psychology student, college basketball player, and gang member. Randy Dixon was all three and not necessarily in that order. In fact, Dixon paired what he had learned in psychology class with his innate court...
Meet Cody
Meet Cody Brown: Helping Memphis Allies participants enter the workforce Creating strong community ties is critical when it comes to the work of Memphis Allies and that is just what Vocational Coordinator Cody Brown does. “My job is to do all the behind-the-scenes...
Meet Portia
Connecting high-risk individuals to the right services: Meet Portia Memphis Allies is increasing services to individuals at highest-risk for involvement in gun violence. Every day, Portia talks to youth, families and young adults, helping them connect to the right...
This project is funded under an agreement with the State of Tennessee and with support of other funders