Shariff Blackwell, CEO

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My name is Shariff Blackwell and I am a single father of two beautiful daughters ages 9 and 19.  As a resident of the City of Brotherly Love, who has lives here for a large majority of my life, I have witnessed many of the highs and lows this city has to offer at a vey young age.  I have faces prejudices and over came them, and though I'm not perfect, I'm here to guide today's youth to help them avoid all that I have been through.

As the second oldest of 18, being raised by a single mother, I faced many difficulties and have been in positions where I had to navigate the system day by day.  I often felt like I did not fit in and as a result of that I ended up in many troublesome situations where I thought I hit rock bottom.  I rebelled and turned to the streets because I had given up on myself and felt like everyone else had given up on me too.  However, in 1994 a pastor showed me there was a way out.  He taught me that there was a better way and that I could become a better me who would get somewhere in life.

Since then I have been improving myself for the better, although I've had times I struggled, the biggest turn around is when I had my first daughter,  Becoming a single father suddenly taught me about sacrifice and  perseverance.  There were days where I wondered if I was doing right by my daughter and being a good parent.  We had our ups and downs however watching her grow and seeing the struggles her and her friends would face, daily, opened my eyes to the idea of doing more for the kids in out communities.

-Shariff Blackwell