Dodging Bullets

It's safe to say that stories involving stray bullets generally don't have happy endings. Fortunately for Jonmel Galloway of Englewood, Chicago, his is the exception.

As the 8-year-old watched TV last Wednesday evening, a bullet pierced the window and made its way through his upper left arm and into his side.

The following day, Jonmel was playing video games while recovering in his hospital bed. According to the Chicago Sun Times, his mother Mary Rice said, "He's very strong. He's not crying about it. He's holding up." She also added that although the Benjamin Mays Academy student is in a great deal of pain, he keeps telling her, "'Tell them I'm OK. I'm OK.'"

Doctors say Jonmel is expected to make a full recovery after receiving physical therapy and counseling. But those means aren't a solution to the real issue at hand: street violence.

Initiatives like CeaseFire by The Chicago Project for Violence Prevention are leading the charge in reduction efforts. CeaseFire is a newly designed and innovative intervention different from other programs. CeaseFire works with community-based organizations and focuses on street-level outreach, conflict mediation and the changing of community norms to reduce violence, particularly shootings. Learn more about Cease Fire — because children's stories shouldn't involve stray bullets.

Photo courtesy of Cellou75via Flicker.