ABOUT
EVERYBODY WENS

Everybody WENS grew out of years of community effort in Birmingham — work led by residents, organizers, faith leaders, families, and young people who refused to accept violence and disconnection as inevitable.

Across neighborhoods, people were already showing up — mediating conflicts, feeding families, mentoring youth, and creating spaces for healing. What was missing was not commitment, but coordination, resources, and sustained support.

Everybody WENS emerged as a way to connect and strengthen what was already happening, while creating room for new leadership, shared learning, and long-term investment.

MISSION & HISTORY.

Jacobie Williams is one of many extraordinary leaders whose lived experience informs this work.

Raised in Birmingham’s Brick Yard community, Jacobie understands firsthand the pressures, choices, and consequences that shape young people’s lives. Like many community leaders, his path into this work was not linear — it was shaped by challenge, reflection, and a growing sense of responsibility.

Over time, Jacobie’s commitment to mentoring, organizing, and community care deepened. Through training and partnership, he became a certified Community Practitioner and stepped into formal leadership roles within Everybody WENS and One Hood WENS.

His story reflects a broader truth of this work: people closest to the challenges are often closest to the solutions — when they are supported to lead.

Community CHALLENGES.

Understanding the Conditions Shaping Violence in Birmingham

Violence in Birmingham does not exist in isolation. It is shaped by long-standing structural, social, and economic conditions that impact neighborhoods differently and compound over time — particularly for young people and families.

Everybody WENS approaches violence prevention by acknowledging these realities and responding with community-driven solutions rooted in care, opportunity, and connection.

Key Challenges Facing Birmingham Communities

Concentrated Economic Instability
Many neighborhoods continue to experience limited access to stable employment, workforce pathways, and entrepreneurial opportunity. Economic instability increases stress on households and limits options for young people navigating adulthood.

Educational Disconnection
Youth and adults facing interrupted schooling, literacy gaps, and barriers to credential attainment are more vulnerable to disengagement and limited long-term opportunity — increasing risk factors associated with violence.

Food Insecurity and Health Inequities
Inconsistent access to nutritious food and wellness resources affects physical and emotional health. These conditions undermine stability, focus, and resilience within families and communities.

Unaddressed Trauma and Disconnection
Exposure to violence, loss, and chronic stress without access to healing spaces or supportive relationships contributes to cycles of harm. Many young people lack consistent, trusted adults and culturally grounded spaces for reflection, accountability, and belonging.

Fragmented Systems of Support
Community members often navigate disconnected services, short-term interventions, and limited coordination between institutions — reducing the effectiveness of prevention efforts and placing added burden on families and grassroots leaders.

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Why Community-Led Prevention Matters

These challenges cannot be solved by enforcement or intervention alone. Lasting safety requires approaches that:
• strengthen economic and educational pathways
• address basic needs and wellness
• center healing and identity
• elevate trusted community leadership

Everybody WENS exists to respond where these challenges intersect — supporting prevention strategies that are rooted in lived experience, sustained relationships, and coordinated investment.

The WENS Model was built for these conditions — not as a theory, but as a response shaped by what communities identified as necessary for change.

PARTNERS.

Everybody WENS does not operate in isolation.

Our work is carried out alongside:

credible messengers and outreach workers
families and youth leaders
faith institutions and neighborhood groups
educators, schools, and colleges
city agencies and public safety partners

Together, these relationships have helped create safer spaces, stronger connections, and opportunities for dialogue and prevention that did not exist before.

Progress in Birmingham has come through collective effort — and Everybody WENS is proud to be one contributor within that shared work.

Serving the community together is more than picking up trash and hosting events. When we serve the community, we're not just serving the people , but we're serving Christ himself. Serving on the same mission and vision as a team creates a deeper bond within the city, and can help build a better community for EVERYBODY.