Tommie grew up in the Austin neighborhood. He lost multiple family members and friends to gun violence. He participated in the street life and spent over a decade in jail on drug charges. When he was released, he started working in construction. However, he always knew he wanted to support at-risk youth. So, when he was recruited by a Nonviolence Chicago Outreach Worker, he decided to change his career and follow his passion. He was hired as a READI Outreach Worker in 2017 and after two years, he was promoted to a Supervisor. In 2022 Tommie joined the first cohort of staff working towards their Bachelor's degree from College Unbound. He is on track to be one of our first gradates, taking his lived experiences and putting them towards higher education credit. The community has known Tommie for decades, and now he is happy that he can be a positive influence to help straighten up the neighborhood and support its residents.