Outreach is local – whether in Memphis or Afghanistan

When TCion Cason was a combat medic, his commander had three words for Army troops as they entered a new area of Afghanistan where the locals did not know them.

“‘Hearts and minds,’ we were there to capture the people’s hearts and minds,” Cason recalled. “That way, they could know we were truly there to provide a service rather than to police them. I spent a lot of my days in Afghanistan teaching people how to provide medical services.”

“It’s the same thing here,” he added. “We spend a lot of time gaining buy-in from the community. We’re not here to be police or tell you what you should do or shouldn’t have done. We’re here to help you find a better way.”

Cason is a team supervisor for Memphis Allies’ SWITCH Youth outreach effort.

Recently, SWITCH Youth, in conjunction with the adult SWITCH program, held its first community outreach event in South Memphis.

“TC had the vision and did a lot of legwork to make that happen,” said Brittney Ragin, director of clinical programs for Memphis Allies.

As of June 26, SWITCH Youth had more than 130 program participants aged 12-18, plus about 40 more in the active outreach phase. Those enrolled in programming gain access to a life coach, a case manager and a clinical specialist. They can obtain assistance with returning to high school or applying for college or a trade school; they also can get help with family and behavioral issues.

Since SWITCH Youth started providing services almost two years ago, most participants in the program have been referrals. And almost all of them, Ragin said, are affiliated with a gang, clique or crew.

“We started without any outreach,” she said of SWITCH Youth. “Pretty quickly in, we realized there’s a huge gap without the outreach piece.”

The benefits of experience

While the adult SWITCH model is in several Memphis communities — Raleigh/Frayser, Orange Mound, Hickory Hill, and South Memphis (with more areas to come) — SWITCH Youth is offered citywide.

Cason, 37, grew up outside the city, in Mason, Tennessee, “raising chickens, growing tomatoes, potatoes and green beans.”

Despite the rural background, Cason still found trouble. He sold drugs and spent time in a county jail.

Having lived that street life, Cason has the necessary LTO – license to operate – required to move about Memphis neighborhoods. It is not so different from his old life as an Army combat medic in Afghanistan.

Access is earned

“Trust is huge,” he said, adding of the people living in South Memphis and other communities beset with poverty and crime: “You have to show that you really want to be a part of what they have going on.

“You have to show that you really have care and concern because they’ve heard stories so many times before, where people come in and write their reports, and then they leave.”

Memphis Allies and SWITCH Youth outreach professionals such as TCion Cason are not going anywhere.

Rather, they are just getting started. But already, Cason says the name “Memphis Allies” is starting to be known where it needs to be known.

“The idea behind that community event was, ‘we’re people just like you’ we like to barbecue, sit back, play cards and have fun,” Cason said, adding that a lot of teenagers need an in-the-streets math lesson:

“Instead of getting $200 for risking your life to take a car, you can rake leaves or wash cars and make $100 with a $3 bottle of soap,” he said. “We’re here to show the kids that they don’t have to be a gangster to have a nice life.”

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