News
20th Anniversary Gala
Hundreds attended the Mothers in Charge 20th Anniversary Gala on May 24 at Lincoln Financial Field.
Both bitter and sweet: Mothers In Charge celebrates 20 years of helping those who have lost a child to gun violence
As our 2oth Anniversary Gala was approaching, The Philadelphia Inquirer published this story reporting how: “Mothers In Charge has grown from a grassroots response to gun violence into a nationally recognized violence prevention, education, and intervention organization.” Read it online: Both bitter and sweet: Mothers In Charge celebrates 20 years of helping those who have lost a child to gun violence
Honored by magazine
Above: Our founder and national executive director Dr. Dorothy Johnson-Speight was recognized in “True Believers: 6 Philadelphians With Promising Approaches to Gun Violence Prevention,” in the March, 2023 edition of Philadelphia Magazine. Read the article.
Get to know Mothers in Charge
Mothers in Charge helping gun violence victims, their families for more than 20 years
Dorothy Johnson-Speight started Mothers in Charge in 2003, two years after the murder of her son Khaaliq. The goal was to create a space that supports victims’ families. More than 20 years later, she is still working and her organization has spread to four more states across the country. Watch the news report on 6ABC.
CBS3 Joy of Sharing toy drive wraps up Wednesday, but still time to help make holidays brighter
CBS Philadelphia has launched its annual Joy of Sharing toy drive, benefiting children in need this holiday season. The campaign has provided toys for more than 100,000 children in need over the years. Your toy donations will benefit both the Salvation Army and Mothers in Charge, a nonprofit which supports mothers who lost children to gun violence. [News report / More info]
Conversation
In 2020, our founder Dr. Dorothy Johnson-Speight took part in a conversation Josh Shapiro, now Governor-elect of Pennsylvania. Watch the video: Dr. Dorothy Johnson-Speight and Josh Shapiro Conversation | Gun Violence
Eagles wear orange to honor survivors and victims of gun violence
With Friday marking Gun Violence Awareness Day, the Philadelphia Eagles were wearing orange practice jerseys which will be auctioned off to benefit two violence prevention organizations, Frontline Dads and Mothers in Charge. Here’s the story: Eagles wear orange to honor survivors and victims of gun violence
New documentary features Mothers in Charge
Our work and community prominently featured in a new documentary that recently premiered online:
In Philadelphia, gun violence is the leading cause of death for young Black men. The documentary, HEAVEN: CAN YOU HEAR ME? explores the devastating impact of gun violence on families seen through the eyes of mothers, like one woman who grieves after the youngest of her four sons was murdered in 2016. Across town, the film takes us into the inner sanctum of Mothers in Charge, a Philadelphia-based service and advocacy organization working with survivors of violence. In weaving together the stories of mothers and community advocates on the frontlines of a crisis, the film paints an intimate portrait of loss, grief, and resilience.
Latest news
Video Messages
Pennsylvania Attorney General Josh Shapiro congratulates Women Working for a Change
The latest class of our Women Working for a Change reentry program graduated on February 9 during a ceremony at the Sister Clara Muhammed School in West Philadelphia. Pennsylvania Attorney General Josh Shapiro sent this video to congratulate the graduates.
Philadelphia City Councilmember Kenyatta Johnson speaks at Women Working for a Change Graduation
The latest class of our Women Working for a Change reentry program graduated on February 9 during a ceremony at the Sister Clara Muhammed School in West Philadelphia. Philadelphia City Councilmember Kenyatta Johnson addressed the graduates.
Here’s what we do
WOMEN WORKING TOGETHER FOR CHANGE
Offering Peer Support Specialists, life skills training, and resource coordination for women returning from incarceration
GRIEF SUPPORT
Individual and group support is available weekly to those who have lost loved ones to violence. Crisis counseling, therapeutic storytelling, and a support hot-line
ANGER MANAGEMENT
Participants are referred from Philadelphia Court & Probation systems for nine, weekly sessions of anger management support.
SCHOOL-BASED GRIEF AND LOSS GROUPS
Group sessions are provided to children who have experienced loss.
THINKING FOR A CHANGE
A Cognitive Skills/Problem-Solving Training for Incarcerated Individuals offered in Three Philadelphia Prisons and for At-Risk populations.
PARTICIPATORY DEFENSE
Community organizing model for people facing charges. Their families and their communities can impact the outcome of cases and transform the landscape of power in the court system. Participatory Defense groups work with the public defender’s office by providing a more holistic view of a person facing criminal charges.
GIRLS MENTORING
Weekly after school life skills and mentoring sessions are offered to at-risk adolescent girls. New Mentors and Young Ladies Are Always Welcome!
PUBLIC INFORMATION AND EDUCATION
MIC conducts public education, outreach and advocacy both locally and nationally to facilitate discussions around the impact of violence.
We are urgently working with our nations leaders to develop trauma-informed solutions to support those left behind to deal with the aftermath of violence.
All of our services and support to the community utilize a “Trauma Informed” service approach. We will be sharing more information on all of our programs soon.
