As we approach the holiday weekend, we decided to take some liberty with the powerful words of the great poet Kahlil Gibran to describe the compassion and generosity for children that is shared so deeply among the PCCY family.

This summer, police violence hit close to home when a young Walter Wallace, Jr. was shot down in the street. We were reminded that each of us has to do more to heal our communities; that hate and selfishness must be replaced with compassion and generosity. And most importantly our children need to hear us say it out loud—Black Lives Matter.

So many children have fathers, mothers, brothers, sisters who, like Mr. Wallace, are receiving mental health care and still they crack. Never should a child witness police, or anyone, wielding guns when they should be showing mercy.

The initial silence that surrounded the shooting’s impact on children was deafening. To preserve the life and wholeness of our children, PCCY convened 35 organizations to break the silence and let Mayor Kenney know that “It’s hard to overstate the chilling effect that our home-grown reality is having on our children. How can they feel there is anyone they can call upon to keep them safe?”

Mayor Kenney and his team immediately responded to our request to work together to make sure that children know that they are valued.

We can already announce new partnerships between the City and non-profit organizations to increase access to counseling for children and new ideas of rebuilding community trust with police.

We wish every child a wonderful holiday, every family a bit of joy, and that together we can act in ways that unleash a bounty of healing.

“The smallest act of kindness is worth more than the greatest intention.” —Kahlil Gibran

Donations of up to $300 made before the end of the year to a charity like PCCY are tax deductible in 2020 for filers who rely on the standard deduction.