Saint Sabina director urges county support for violence-prevention services, recounts personal loss

Pam Bosley, executive director of the Saint Sabina Violence Prevention Center, told the Cook County Board of Commissioners during the meeting's public-comment period that her organization provides violence-prevention, intervention and victim-advocacy services across the county and asked the body to continue supporting that work. "Purpose Over Pain provides immediate and long term support to families impacted by gun violence," Bosley said, describing the program she oversees.

Bosley told commissioners the center operates an Employment Resource Center that runs job-readiness and adult-education programs, a Strong Future program that provides street outreach and case management for justice-involved youth ages 14 and up, and a victims-advocate program. She said 17 clients graduated from the Strong Future program this year and the program currently serves 19 active clients. "We provide court advocacy, connecting families to resources, and providing funeral planning assistance to parents," Bosley said.

Bosley also spoke about Purpose Over Pain, a support network she said was founded in 2007 and has served "over 500 parents." She related her own loss: her son, Terrell, was shot and killed at age 18 and, she said, the case remains unsolved. Bosley thanked the board and President Toni Preckwinkle for recognizing Violence Prevention Awareness Month and said her goal is to support other families facing similar losses.

Her remarks occurred during the public-comment portion of the meeting, when speakers were limited to three minutes and translation services were available on request. There was no formal action tied to Bosley's remarks; they were entered into the record as public testimony.