Hispanic church offers alternative to street gangs - Salinas, California

When Pastor Frank Gomez first arrived at his church on the central California coast, he was sometimes afraid to stay in the building alone.

“(Salinas was) a hotbed of gang activity - many shootings,” he says.

While counseling an imprisoned gang member, Gomez learned the young man once used the church parking lot to stake out a nearby business that he planned to rob.

Eight years later, the environment has changed dramatically at the La Sagrada Familia United Methodist Church of Salinas. The church is now a safe haven for children seeking help with their homework after school. In the process, they learn about alternatives to joining street gangs.”*

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