KENT, Wash. — Community activists joined police and city leaders at a notorious Kent intersection to fight back against violence in the community on Sunday.
The intersection at 108th Avenue SE and SE 240th Street has been an ongoing problem for Kent police.
“Unfortunately, this is where a lot of the crime and murders and gun violence and gang violence is taking place,” Pastor Lawrence Boles explained.
Pastor Boles and other community leaders put together an outreach event with food, music, speakers, and school supplies for children in the area.
Kent Police Chief Rafael Padilla, Mayor Dana Ralph, and Councilmember Zandria Michaud were among those who came out to support and interact with the community.
Chief Padilla said the corner has been a trouble spot for years. In 2018, Kent police saw more violent activity there than anywhere else in the city.
“This intersection has the most amount of shootings and homicides in the entire city,” Padilla said.
Desperate for change, a community partnership blossomed between police and a coalition led by Pastor Boles. Boles and others helped with outreach events, nighttime walks, and townhall meetings that started making a difference.
“Within a year we saw the homicides drop by 70 percent, our shootings were cut in the half and the only thing that changed was this connection with the church. The community came together,” Chief Padilla said.
Unfortunately, the pandemic set that hard work back and they’ve seen violent crimes and drug activity increase.
“I think the number-one key is attention and love and anytime you show love outside the violence, it kind of draws people to appreciate their community,” Pastor Boles said.
Boles knows what he's talking about. This leader for change - a former felon - is a changed man himself.
“I'm taking everything that I feel could have helped me and I'm bringing it back to the community,” Boles said.
Boles and the police continue to work together and hope by restarting their outreach efforts, they can turn around rising crime numbers.
“When the community takes ownership and feels that there are people that will value and support them to make this a great place to live, that's when we see true results,” Chief Padilla said.
Sunday’s event was the second outreach they’ve hosted. They hope to continue.