PEORIA, Ill. (25 News) – Students got to hear stories from Peoria County jail inmates on Friday, as part of a program organizers hope will keep kids out of trouble.
Boys ages 12-16 who struggle with behavioral issues and are considered high risk, got to listen to eight men serving time in jail.
Elite Community Outreach Founder Carl Cannon told 25 News with a string of violence involving juveniles in Peoria, the goal is to warn them about their potential fate if they go down the wrong path.
“What’s your mission? ‘Save lives.’ Each of them has accepted the challenge to share their story believing that someone in this room right now, there’s a young person facing the same battles that they did,” Cannon said.
“I refuse to see all of you die or worse, be in prison for that matter. I tried to warn my younger brother and he didn’t listen, and now he’s facing prison time,” George Bell, one of the Elite participants, said.
The inmates were chosen after completing a rigorous program at the Peoria County Jail.
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