Local nonprofit organization Parents United Against Youth Violence held their latest community march and rally on Saturday, this time in the area of Barnes Street in El Dorado.
The rally, said Parents United founder Ana Ford, featured speakers, music, food and a march, all meant to raise awareness about and help prevent of youth violence.
"The purpose of every march is to bring hope to the community, and to let people know there's a group that cares about them. We're a Christian organization, so we'll always bring the word of God and have people speak, pray, worship and sing," Ford said.
Speakers Lorenzo Loston and Jeremy Junior shared their stories at the event, Ford said, along with Pastor CJ Owens and local nonprofit and performance group Young Artist Studio (YAS), who performed.
Another new addition was the organization Men of Purpose.
"They are a group of men going around town, mentoring the younger generation and letting them know there's a better lifestyle," Ford said. Ford credited Kendall Dykes with having the "vision" for that organization and said Parents United and Men of Purpose plan to partner and collaborate on events.
The rally also included food courtesy of the group Man to Man, Woman to Woman.
The march began at Barnes Street and continued to Center Street and Hawthorne, Ford said.
Ford said that the marchers stopped near where Ashley Bell, an El Dorado woman who died in Nov. 2020, was shot and killed.
"We stopped and did a memorial, and prayed for the family and prayed for the city, to show that we're there for them. It was back in 2020 but it's fresh in their minds; she left behind a 5-year-old little girl," Ford said.
Parents United plans to hold another march on June 15 at the Haygood-Neal Apartments; details including speakers will be announced before that date.
"The main thing we do is salvation -- to let kids know there's something better than what they're doing now, that there is hope and a way to change," Ford said.
Ford also offered an update on Parents United, saying that the group has achieved official 501 (c)(3) nonprofit status and has taken over the reward funds for currently unsolved cases including Ieshia Jackson, an El Dorado woman who has been missing since 2020, Bell, and Octavious "Tay" Critton, a 17-year-old who was shot and killed in 2019 at the 1200 block of California Street.
Currently, according to rewards posters published by Parents United on social media, rewards stand at $1,500, $2,500, and $10,000 for information leading to the arrest and prosecution of person(s) involved in the murders of Bell and Critton and the disappearance of Jackson, respectively.
Anonymous texts and calls with info can be made to 870-440-0000.