Next year will mark the 20th anniversary of the Baychester Youth Council, the organization that Ms. Russell founded to address youth violence, drugs and crime in a poverty-stricken area of the northeast Bronx. She created this organization in response to a young area resident who asked her why he should work for a minimum wage when he could make good money selling drugs. Today, this man is employed as a professional with a Fortune 500 company and is a productive member of the local community all as a result of Ms. Russells efforts.
Realizing her community was in crisis, Ms. Russell left a job she had struggled to earn with AT&T. She approached the principal of the local middle school and convinced him to donate space for an after-school program. The school sent her their toughest kids and she set about to change their lives. Putting together a rag-tag board of directors and a faithful prayer group, Ms. Russell set up an organization with the objective of meeting her promise to the children. She taught the classes herself without compensation, relying upon the odd gift, subsidized housing and a check from Social Security to pay her bills. What little money she did earn went back to her program, allowing her to purchase art supplies and sports equipment. Eventually, she was able to pull her husband and sons into the enterprise during their free time. They acted as her only staff.
Over the years, she has managed to mobilize a small army of volunteers from the city housing projects where she lives. Wherever possible, she has hired residents of the neighborhood, providing desperately needed jobs. Through the network of relationships she developed, she managed to build a program that today offers a wide range of services to young people, including health referral services, education services, human service referrals, creative arts programs and a number of youth-oriented program events.
The center of her focus, however, has always remained the children. If you ask her, she will proudly tell you that she has never lost a child, meaning that every child that has taken part in her program has succeeded in graduating from high school. She also can offer hundreds of success stories about how her students have completed college, technology courses or apprenticeships.
Ms. Russell was also the driving force behind establishing the Baychester Community Center, which serves area residents of all ages. Until recently, Ms. Russell herself cooked an evening meal for children at the Center - preparing for the meal while they were attending the regular school day.
Ms. Russell, who was born of poor African-American parents outside of Charleston, South Carolina, is perhaps the most remarkable person that I will ever come across in my lifetime. Although she would never describe it as such, her sacrifices have saved the lives of hundreds of children. They have also improved life within the community for everyone by helping to mitigate the participation of neighborhood youth in the local drug trade.
Last year, Ms. Russell obtained a grant from the New York State Department of Education for the Baychester Youth Council. For the first time in nearly 20 years, she has funding to pursue her program objectives. Ms. Russell was finally given a commendation this summer by the New York State Senate and Assembly, and New York City for her work with local youth.
To learn more about Ms. Russell and the Baychester Youth Council, please visit www.baychesteryouth.org.
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