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2021-11-11 06:46:10 (UTC)
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Bully

‎Thursday, ‎November ‎11, ‎2021


A Springfield neighborhood says enough is enough after a shooting that injured a juvenile.

Police responded to Grant Beach Park around 6:30 p.m.
Police responded to Grant Beach Park around 6:30 p.m.
Officers responded to Grant Beach Park in north Springfield Monday evening.

Police say it started as a fistfight on the park’s basketball court. The juvenile suffered a gunshot wound during the argument. Police say he is listed in stable condition. Police have not released any details about the shooter, but say those involved knew each other.

Amy Blansit operates the Drew Lewis Foundation in the neighborhood. Meghan Storey lives in the neighborhood. Blansit and Storey say they are uniting to create a change.

“We intentionally are in this neighborhood because it takes individuals who say enough is enough,” said Blansit. “How do we give individuals the tools to make better choices and to live better quality lives.”

Storey says incidents like this bring the neighborhood closer.

“Whenever things like this do happen, we all join up,” said Storey. “I mean, we are calling each other, we are texting each other is everyone okay, we are hugging each other. So it almost brings us closer together.”

Police have not released the victim’s name.

Storey also said they need to stay together during this time.

“We’ve got to hold our ground,” said Storey. “We’re going to stay here and we’re not we’re not scared.”

Grant Beach neighbors said moments like these make the community stronger.

“We all join up,” said Storey. “We are calling each other, we’re texting each other, is everyone okay. We’re hugging each other. So it almost brings us closer together.”

Blansit hopes more can be done to change what’s happened over the past few months.

“We’ve got to get our hands dirty,” said Blansit. “We’ve got to get involved and engaged, we’ve got to make sure that 14-year-old boys have a safe place to go when they’re in some type of altercation.”

Both Blansit and Storey live and work together at the Drew Lewis Foundation. And both them and many others want to change the way people see the northside of Springfield.

“I think it would be awesome to see our families experiencing policing and more than just a negative connotation,” said Storey.

Members of the community are talking about making a revitalized task force to build up kids and get police to be a part of the community.

“I think something like that would be pairing policing, and community members, the gatekeepers,” said Storey.

Blansit also said communicating these types of actions is not OK in our community.

“Self-policing, if you’re on my turf, you’re in my neighborhood, and this is how we want it to be,” said Blansit. “If that’s not how your intentions are, then this is the wrong neighborhood for you.”




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