ASF Resource Guide

TO REACH BALT IMOREANS Outreach continues Fayette Street A Step Forward Inc. has been blessed to have Timothy Bridges, a staple within District 44 A, heading its board. A Step Forward has also part- nered with Mr. Bridges at Fayette Street Outreach as a means of giving back to our community. Here is more on Tim Bridges and Fayette Street Outreach... Edna Manns-Lake, Timothy Bridges, and Sterling Brunson have spent decades trying to ensure that Baltimore keeps its Charm. Throughout the 1980s and 1990s, Southwest Baltimore was impoverished and suffer- ing the negative consequences of its losing battle against drug abuse and drug trafficking. In the midst of this tumultuous era, Manns-Lake and some local community members met at her mother’s house to devise a com- prehensive plan to combat the flow of narcotics and restore order and safety. That meeting ultimately led to the creation of a nonprofit organization called Fayette Street Outreach (FSO) in 1993. “Our first ever project was the youth beautifi- cation,” Manns-Lake, who also serves

as FSO’s president, recalled. “We cleaned up the neighborhood and boarded-up houses. We also began working with the police to identify drug hot spots in the area. Back in the mid-’90s through the middle of the 2000s, drug trafficking was very heavy on the west side and the community came together to fight against the drug activity that was going on. We actually stood in front of payphones to disrupt the dealers’ business. We didn’t eliminate it, but it’s down to a crawl. People feel much safer. There is also some new development underway in the area.” Bridges, who graduated from Southwestern High School and serves as FSO’s vice president and as the board chair of A Step Forward, a local non profit alcohol, drug and mental health organization, discussed the state of local drug dealing. He also applauded the community as a whole and noted the importance of funding to support their mission. “Currently, a lot of drug activity is being done by youngsters who we watched grow up,” Bridges said. “Many of these children were always

counted out and told that they wouldn’t amount to anything. Some of the kids feel like they have no other options, and the street corners are always hiring. Basically, because some feel like they don’t have an alternative to drug dealing, we aren’t on an even playing field. Fortunately, one thing that makes our communi-