YOUTURN IN OMAHA AWARDED $100,000 SUPPORT GRANT FROM EVERYTOWN COMMUNITY SAFETY FUND TO EXPAND YOUTH DEVELOPMENT AND HOSPITAL-BASED INTERVENTION

Everytown Reinvests In Omaha’s Growing CVI Work Amid DOJ Funding Cuts

OMAHA, Neb. — Today, the Everytown Community Safety Fund, a program of Everytown for Gun Safety Support Fund, announced that YouTurn will receive a $100,000 support grant over two years to sustain and expand its youth-focused violence intervention work.

YouTurn uses a combined model of street outreach, youth mentorship, and hospital-based violence intervention, working with adolescents and young adults ages 12–25+. In 2025, YouTurn launched its hospital-based program in partnership with CHI Health and Nebraska Medicine to connect with survivors of violence during their most vulnerable moments.

“We’re proud to re-invest in YouTurn, whose integrated youth and hospital-based strategies have proven effective in preventing violence,” said Michael-Sean Spence, managing director of Community Safety Initiatives at Everytown and creator of the Community Safety Fund. “As federal rollbacks reduce access to funding, it’s critical that trusted organizations like YouTurn can continue their life-saving work.”

“Our mission is to break cycles of violence by reaching young people where they are — in the community, in schools, and now in hospitals,” said Stewart Giddings, Assistant Director, YouTurn. “This grant ensures that we can keep delivering the mentorship and support that save lives.”

The announcement comes as the Department of Justice has slashed funding for public safety grants, challenging community organizations to sustain their lifesaving efforts with declining support. At the same time, many cities that have invested in community violence intervention (CVI) are seeing gun homicides decline,  a powerful testament to the effectiveness of programs like YouTurn. Research shows that community-level violence prevention programs can contribute to drops in crime.

Since its launch in 2019, the Everytown Community Safety Fund has invested more than $15.7 million in grants to 142 CVI organizations across 72 U.S. cities, in addition to technical support and capacity building resources. This year, Everytown is awarding $2.67 million in grants nationwide, including renewed support for long-standing partners like the YouTurn. More about the Everytown Community Safety fund and their grantees can be found here.

About YouTurn

YouTurn is a community-based violence intervention organization in Omaha, Nebraska, dedicated to ending cycles of violence among young people. Through personalized outreach, mentorship, case management, and newly launched hospital-based programming, YouTurn helps high-risk adolescents and young adults build long-term pathways to stability, healing, and opportunity. Learn more at https://youturnomaha.org/.