Pittsburg, PA

KD Sunday Spotlight: South Pittsburgh Coalition for Peace interrupting the cycle of youth violence

Published

1 year ago

August 6, 2023

KD Sunday Spotlight: South Pittsburgh Coalition for Peace interrupting the cycle of youth violence

PITTSBURGH (KDKA) – In this week’s KD Sunday Spotlight, we’re highlighting a community organization made up of people who work every day to try to prevent young people from becoming shooting victims or shooting suspects.

I have been covering the South Pittsburgh Coalition for Peace’s efforts for more than two years and now the coalition is implementing new programs to de-escalate conflict among at-risk youth.

“Our kids are being slaughtered in the streets by each other,” said Rev. Eileen Smith, the executive director of South Pittsburgh Coalition for Peace.

Even when it seems like there is no end in sight to senseless violence in the city of Pittsburgh, Smith stays determined.

“We don’t quit even though we get discouraged when we see the numbers going up, that is just life, and we’re trying to make life better, so we don’t quit for that reason,” Smith said.

The coalition is a conglomerate of agencies. It was founded in 2005 by the Birmingham Foundation after a Carrick High School student was shot and killed outside the school.

“And it’s hard to believe that it’s quadrupled these youth murders,” Smith said.

Smith answered her community’s call for help about 10 years ago after retiring from the state department of health as a violence and injury prevention consultant. She was also an ICU nurse for many years.

Smith is known for bringing people together in unity at countless prayer vigils and meetings with partner organizations, city officials, and police to come up with plans to stop precious youth from being gunned down.

“Our belief is that we have to get them young before they grow, and they are statistics out here. So, our goal is to stop that,” she said.

South Pittsburgh Coalition for Peace’s trained peacemakers are like angels on earth. They work tirelessly on the streets in South Pittsburgh neighborhoods.

Smith says they have four violence interrupters and two outreach workers.

“We’d like to have double that out there and I think we can make an even greater difference and save more lives because when we lose kids, we feel that perhaps there was something we missed, we didn’t do,” she said.

The peacemakers respond to shootings at a moment’s notice. They spent hours on tragic scenes in Mount Oliver the last week of July. 17-year-old Andrew Smith died after he was found shot near a Sunoco gas station. Just days before, two teen boys from Carrick and one man were injured in a shooting a few blocks away.

“They were there on the scene, and this is devastating to them as well. They are a bunch of specials called for this purpose men and women who show up, do what they have to do, and go and cry later,” Smith said.

Allegheny County Department of Human Services provided funding and chose the South Pittsburgh Coalition for Peace to be one of several “quarterbacks” to implement three programs as part of a community violence prevention initiative.

The peacemakers now use the Cure Violence Global model (https://cvg.org/), which is to mediate potentially violent conflicts, reach those most likely to commit violence, and change community norms around violence.

“Not only are they walking the streets, patrolling, preventing, putting out fires before they get started and they mentor these young people, we do mediations with them and families,” Smith said.

The other two programs start in the Fall. That includes Young Guidance’s Becoming a Man program, which will be added to Carrick High School. Counselors will help teen boys make responsible decisions.

The other new program, Readi Chiago, is a paid transitional jobs program for men. They’re still hiring people interested in the new Readi Chicago program, which provides a 12-month employment opportunity. If anyone is interested, just reach out to the coalition on Facebook or call them at 412-481-2777.

Smith said they are thankful for the City of Pittsburgh as well; the city has provided a stop the violence grant.

Smith said it takes a village and it’s time to work together.

“Report potential conflicts and crime, be helpful to our investigators, our police department, give them respect because they’re doing an awesome job and help them to solve these crimes as well but help us to prevent these crimes as well,” she said.

You can learn more about SPCP’s programs, partners, and funders on its website.

If you would like to see an organization highlighted in KDKA’S Sunday Spotlight segment, send Jessica Guay an email at jguay@kdka.com

Jessica Guay

Jessica Guay joined KDKA as a reporter in February 2021. Before joining KDKA, Jessica was a morning anchor and reporter at WJAC in Johnstown, Pennsylvania. She was also an anchor and reporter at WCHS in Charleston, West Virginia, and at WTOV in Steubenville, Ohio.

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Pittsburg, PA

Ireland Contracting Nightly Sports Call: Dec. 25, 2024

Published

6 hours ago

December 26, 2024

Press Room

Ireland Contracting Nightly Sports Call: Dec. 25, 2024 – CBS Pittsburgh

Watch CBS News

KDKA-TV’s Cassidy Wood and KDKA Radio’s Suzie Cool discuss the sports topics of the day.

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Pittsburg, PA

Stick a fork in the Pittsburgh Steelers

Published

17 hours ago

December 25, 2024

Press Room

As I sit here feeling a headache form in between sips of egg nog in my new Ice Nine Kills sweatshirt, I’ve written, erased, and rewritten the opener for this six times. What can even be said after what we just watched other than “Yeah, this team isn’t going anywhere.”

From the opening drive, these were the same Steelers we’ve seen the last two weeks – unorganized, unmotivated, and a complete non-threat to teams that are actually contenders in the AFC.

The Chiefs jumped out to a 13-0 lead after the Steelers punted on their first two drives that spanned a combined eight plays. The Steelers weren’t down and out yet, though. A quick drive that featured several big Jaylen Warren runs got them into the red zone in three plays. Warren ran into the end zone, but a holding call on Darnell Washington brought it back. The next play, Russell Wilson threw an interception to Justin Reid and that all but sealed the deal. Even when Wilson ran in for a score to make the lead 13-7, it never really felt like the Steelers would take the game by the horns and make a statement. The only statement they made is that they remain a second-class team.

Even when they owned time of possession, they didn’t do anything with the ball. They had the ball for 31:22, but their two turnovers plus a turnover on downs did them in. They ran the ball well, as Najee Harris and Jaylen Warren both finished with over 70 yards and the team accumulated over 200 yards on the day. But five Russell Wilson sacks and a lackluster passing game were Pittsburgh’s undoing offensively.

Defensively, this team is lost. After the first two scores, multiple players are throwing up their hands in confusion wondering what happened. They didn’t register a sack on Mahomes, they gave up 320 yards through the air, and allowed 16 first downs via Mahomes’ arm. This is not a good defense, and they lack any sort of aggressiveness to try and help the back end with pressure. Now at 10-6 and losers of three straight, Pittsburgh will likely be the No. 5 seed and travel to Houston or Baltimore for the wild card round, and nothing they’ve shown over the last month gives anyone any reason to believe they’d win. Stick a fork in the Pittsburgh Steelers, this isn’t a serious football team.

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Pittsburg, PA

Pittsburgh Steelers Christmas Day History: Record, Statistics, & More

Published

1 day ago

December 25, 2024

Press Room

Pittsburgh Steelers Christmas Day History: Record, Statistics, & More

The Pittsburgh Steelers will face the Kansas City Chiefs on Christmas Day as part of a two-game showcase on Netflix.

A Brief History of the Steelers on Christmas Day

Wednesday’s matchup against the Chiefs will only be the third time the Steelers have played on Christmas Day in their history. Pittsburgh played on consecutive Christmas Days in 2016 and in ’17. They hold a 2–0 record on Christmas, beating the Baltimore Ravens in ’16 and the Houston Texans in ’17. A win over the Chiefs this year would allow the Steelers to keep their undefeated Christmas record.

The NFL first played Christmas games in 1971 when hosting two matchups: Dallas Cowboys vs. Minnesota Vikings and Kansas City Chiefs vs. Miami Dolphins. The league took a long break from hosting Christmas Day games until 1989. The NFL didn’t consistently showcase Christmas Day games until somewhat recently. Games on the holiday used to happened every few years or so, but now there’s been at least one if not more Christmas Day games every year since 2020.

The 2022 and ’23 seasons saw three Christmas Day games each, the most ever hosted on the holiday. It’s more rare for the NFL to have Christmas games compared to the long-standing tradition of Thanksgiving games.

Key Moments in Steelers’ Christmas Day History

The Steelers’ first Christmas Day game back in 2016 vs. the Ravens was one for the history books. Pittsburgh clinched the AFC North title after former receiver Antonio Brown scored a four-yard touchdown with nine seconds left in the game to give the Steelers a 31–27 victory. It’s always a huge win when the Steelers beat their AFC North rivals, but it helps that a playoff spot was on the line, too. Pittsburgh advanced to the AFC Championship that season, but lost to the eventual Super Bowl championship-winning New England Patriots.

The Steelers’ 2017 Christmas Day matchup vs. the Texans the following year wasn’t as nail-biting as Pittsburgh dominated 34–6. The Steelers scored four touchdowns in the game compared to the Texans’ one touchdown, which resulted in no two-point conversion. The Steelers would go on to lose in the wild-card round to the Jacksonville Jaguars.

It’s been so long since the Steelers have played in a Christmas Day game, though, as former quarterback Ben Roethlisberger led the team to both of these key wins mentioned above. The Steelers are on their fourth starting quarterback since Roethlisberger retired after the 2021 season.

By the Numbers: Steelers’ Christmas Day Record

The Steelers hold a 2–0 record on Christmas Day.

Year Advertisement	Opponent	Result
2016	Baltimore Ravens	W, 31–27 Advertisement
2017	Houston Texans	W, 34–6

Roethlisberger threw for 279 yards, three touchdowns and two interceptions during the win over the Ravens. Running back Le’Veon Bell carried the ball 20 times for 122 yards and one touchdown. And, another blast from the past, Brown caught the ball 10 times for 96 yards and one touchdown.

Both Roethlisberger and Bell showed out for the Steelers in 2017, too. The quarterback threw for 226 yards and two touchdowns, while the running back carried the ball 14 times for 69 yards and one touchdown. Receiver JuJu Smith-Schuster led the Steelers with six catches for 75 yards and one touchdown in the contest. Brown missed the game due to injury.

Steelers’ Christmas Day Heroes

As mentioned above, both Roethlisberger and Bell appeared as heroes for the Steelers in both previous Christmas Day games. Brown, too, is considered the hero of the 2016 game as he scored the final touchdown to seal the win.

Memorable Rivalries and Matchups

Rivalry games are often showcased during the Christmas Day matchups. The Steelers were a part of that narrative in 2016 when playing against the Ravens, but this year the Steelers and Ravens will be playing in different Christmas games. The Ravens will be playing the Texans after the Steelers–Chiefs game.

The Chiefs have appeared in multiple rivalry Christmas Day games against the Las Vegas Raiders in 2004 and ’23, and also against the Denver Broncos in 2016. Kansas City holds a 2–2 record on Christmas Day.

The Christmas Day games often hold playoff implications for teams as the games are played near the end of the regular season. Before the 18-week season, the Christmas Day games were sometimes the last games of the season for some teams. However, both the Steelers and Chiefs clinched playoff spots already. The Steelers will need to win in order to keep the top AFC North seed, especially if the Ravens beat the Texans.

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