MEET PEACE PORTRAITS HONOREE
PABLO GALVEZ
Story: Sue Cardenas-Soto | Photography: Kelcey McKinney | Photo Editor: Isabel Miranda | Video: 5 by 12 Films | Producer: Camille Travis
Peace Portraits, presented by the Illinois Peace Project, is a visual series dedicated to spotlighting the incredible individuals making a difference to create or maintain peace in Illinois. Five honorees were selected after a review of more than 30 submissions and a rigorous judging process. These individuals embody the spirit of Peace Portraits, as they work tirelessly to strengthen their communities, empower residents, and inspire change.
Relationships are at the heart of Community Violence Intervention (CVI).
Without them, CVI would not be as effective or as meaningful. Pablo Galvez lives this philosophy every day as the Scaling Community Violence Intervention for a Safer Chicago (SC2) Manager at BUILD Chicago (Broader Urban Involvement and Leadership Development), a violence prevention and youth development organization based on Chicago’s West Side.
Galvez grew up in Cicero, a community immediately west of Chicago that sees its fair share of violence. “Gangs were everywhere. I got exposed to a lot of it.”
But after witnessing the death of his childhood friend, Galvez was set on a path to end the cycles of violence in his very own neighborhood.
Violence interrupters from the organization CeaseFire initially assisted his friend’s family and prevented retaliatory violence. Galvez began volunteering with the organization in the community, attending marches and vigils, and eventually applied for a position as an outreach worker.
Galvez said he prayed for the opportunity.
“Through a dream, God told me, ‘You’re gonna get something you’ve been asking for.’ And sure enough, several days later, they called me,” he said.
His credibility in the community helped him rise through the ranks at CeaseFire, becoming a supervisor and then leader of the Cicero team for two years. After funding for CeaseFire was cut, Adam Alonso, the former CEO of Corazon Community Services, moved to BUILD on the West Side, and invited Galvez to join the team.
Galvez’s ability to build coalitions across communities made him an effective street outreach worker, whether he was in Cicero or elsewhere on the West Side.
“Black and Brown, we have our differences, but we also have the same struggles,” Galvez said.
Now, as the SC2 Manager at BUILD, Galvez shares his experience, strength, and hope with young people. He leads a workforce development program funded by the SC2 initiative, which has connected many young participants to employment in the short time since its existence.
His favorite initiative, though, is his annual Mother’s Day Celebration, where he helps participants who have troubled relationships with their moms mend their bond through a community celebration. The event features a creative art project, dinner, and dancing. For ten years, Galvez has given his participants the space and resources to honor, celebrate, and care for their mothers: “It’s a beautiful thing.”
Galvez has now seen his young participants grow into CVI professionals and mentors to a new generation, many times over. Participants take the support and love Galvez provided and pay it forward.
“[It’s] the full circle, you know? It’s been over ten years worth of seeing kids grow up to be adults and now they’re one of us, you know?” Galvez said, noting that the transformation is a steady process.
"Relationships are key to this line of work. These kids need you at night, when there's a crisis."
But Galvez isn’t shy about sharing the realities of street outreach work. It’s more than a typical eight-hour-a-day job, where you can log your hours and check out when you’re done. It requires round-the-clock readiness and an incredible amount of patience and empathy.
“Relationships are key to this line of work. These kids need you at night, when there’s a crisis,” Galvez said. Sometimes, the crisis is an arrest or a shooting incident. Other times, young people just need a hug or a shoulder to cry on.
“Those are the moments it’s worth it,” Galvez said.
The Illinois Peace Project is an initiative supported by partner organizations with a shared vision for reducing gun violence in Illinois.
NEXT STORY: Meet Peace Portraits Honoree Nekenya Hardy >>