What we do, why we do it.
Empowering Youth. Unlocking Potential
We help kids and underserved communities gain access to education, tech, gaming, mentorship, and real-life opportunities—so they can rise, grow, and thrive.
Picture: Villa Cop House, Game Day...we had board games, card games, video games, neighbordhood officers played and all were fed, by neighbordhood pizza joint, Wells Bros.
About Us
The HARD Questions
What can we do to prevent young people from doing the dangerous work of gang members? To stop them from carjacking for others, selling drugs, or joining a gang? to keep them off opioids, off the streets, and out of harm's way?
These are the questions we asked ourselves when we created getoffthestreets.org. organization.
Our "Why" - From Lived Experience to Legacy
I was one of those kids.
The ones walking aimlessly through the city because there was nothing else to do.
The ones playing in arcades and game rooms just to escape the noise at home.
The ones who lived through the breakup of a family, surrounded by broken adults—good people just trying to survive, working hard, dealing with their own pain.
I was that child who got meals wherever I could.
Who was temporarily “adopted” by other families.
Who tagged along just to belong.
But I also found purpose—early—through volunteering at the Youth Service Project on North Avenue in Chicago. Even when my own world felt unstable, I learned how to show up for others. And that spark never left me.
I Wasn’t Alone — My Brother Wilson
My brother Wilson—tall, strong, loving—was nicknamed “Kojak” in the neighborhood. But even his size didn’t protect him.
He was constantly being pressured to join a gang. Bullied, challenged, provoked.
Our mom tried to save him the best way she could—she put him in karate classes, and he trained hard, eventually earning his black belt.
But even that wasn't enough.
The streets didn’t respect boundaries. One fight became another. Fists turned to weapons.
And that's when he made a move—to Cleveland, Ohio—to break the cycle.
He joined the U.S. Army, trained as a lead mechanic for Fire and EMS, and eventually became a police officer in an underserved community—the very kind of community that tried to swallow him whole.
From Our Struggles, We Built a Mission
We know firsthand what it feels like to grow up with nowhere to go and no one who truly sees you.
So we created GetOffTheStreets.org—Wilson’s Project—to change that story for someone else’s child.
When my brother passed away, I knew I had to do more than mourn him. I had to build something—to keep his spirit alive and to give kids like us the chance to write a different ending.
This is more than a nonprofit.
This is a legacy.
Officer Wilson Velazquez #708 EOW 1/17/2021
Officer Wilson Velazquez, passed away from a heart condition on 1./17/2021 . He had worked for the City of Cleveland for over 20 years as a Lead Mechanic for the Emergency Medical Services and for the Fire Department. In addition, he served as an Officer for the New London, Ohio Police Department for over 16 yrs. Officer Wilson believed in Community, they called him the Gentle Giant. As a result family and friends have decided to continue serving on his behalf.