Alive & Free works to prevent incarceration or other negative outcomes and instead helps young people to create pathways to college and meaningful careers. We accomplish this by changing beliefs, attitudes, values and actions that promote violence while at the same time empowering young people to set high expectations for academic endeavors.

Almost 30 years later, 216 young people have graduated from college with scholarships from Alive & Free. Over 30% of our graduates have gone on to earn post-graduate degrees and 33% hold senior or top-level positions at their companies. This year we aim to send even more depending on the funds we raise together right now!

Alive & Free (formerly Omega Boys Club) was co-founded in 1987 when public school educators Joseph Marshall and Jack Jacqua just couldn’t handle losing another one of their students to the streets. “Back then, something terrible seemed to be happening every day,” recalls Marshall. “The drugs, the gangs, the turf, the funerals – we had enough of it and we knew that something had to be done. Omega was that something.”

Thank you for helping to keep our young people Alive & Free... and Educated!