Waterloo kids hope to tackle violence

A group of Waterloo teens hope to tackle violence in their community by opening a center for young people. Shatora Carson is a member of REMIX — which stands for “Reaching Every Mature Individual’s Excellence.” Everything’s free, Carson says, including a new membership card. Workshops will be scheduled with local writers on poetry, to help show youths how to set down their thoughts on paper, and there’ll be anger-management and “mannerism classes.” The center’s based in a building that once was a church — but the its programs aren’t all faith-based. Carson says in addition to the ongoing classes they hope to bring a major event like a concert to the community every month. Carson says every month there will be events, to answer the frequent complaint of young people that there’s nothing for them to do. “I know a lot of youth might not come to the programming, but if they can just … come to some of the special events, at least we’ve got them off the streets for a little bit.” Members have applied for grants, and the project’s received month from the city of Waterloo and Black Hawk County.