Current:Home > MarketsChicago program helps young people find purpose through classic car restoration-LoTradeCoin
Chicago program helps young people find purpose through classic car restoration
View Date:2024-12-23 22:03:02
Chicago — After he was shot and wounded last year, 19-year-old Jeff Battles is now finding a new direction through his love of old cars.
"Wrong place, wrong time, with the wrong people," Battles told CBS News of the shooting. "It hit me in my right shoulder, and came out my neck right here."
He described the incident as a wake-up call.
"I almost lost my life, man," Battles said. "I gotta change. I gotta do better."
Doing better brought the teen to the Chicago-based nonprofit Automotive Mentoring Group and its founder, Alex Levesque.
"The only way you change the behavior of a person is if you change the way they think," Levesque said.
Through the program, young people learn to fix up old cars, and in turn, find well-paying jobs. The program focuses on helping current and former gang members, helping them achieve goals such as earning high school diplomas, enrolling in college and find jobs and apprenticeships in the auto industry.
"Nobody else wants to deal with those guys," Levesque said of some of the people who have come through the program. "So I want to deal with those guys. Because those are the guys that I see are the real problem."
About 1,500 people have passed through the Automotive Mentoring Group since 2007. Levesque says about 85% of them have turned their lives around.
"I don't necessarily think that this is the answer to all of it," Levesque said. "I just know it's a damn good answer. And it's what I know how to do."
It's also a lesson Battles is learning.
"I refuse to be a stereotype," Battles said. "I'm starting from the foundation, and I'm gonna work my way up."
- In:
- Chicago
- Auto Industry
Kris Van Cleave is CBS News' senior transportation and national correspondent based in Phoenix.
TwitterveryGood! (5462)
Related
- Outgoing North Carolina governor grants 2 pardons, 6 commutations
- 'Super fog' causes multi-car pileup on Louisiana highway: Police
- Pakistani court indicts former Prime Minister Imran Khan on charges of revealing official secrets
- Diana Nyad marks anniversary of epic Cuba-Florida swim, freeing rehabilitated sea turtle in the Keys
- Massive dust storm reduces visibility, causes vehicle pileup on central California highway
- How long before a phone is outdated? Here's how to find your smartphone's expiration date
- North Carolina Senate advances congressional map plan that could give Republicans a 3-seat gain
- Bill Belichick finally gets 300th career regular-season win as Patriots upset Bills
- Just Eat Takeaway sells Grubhub for $650 million, just 3 years after buying the app for $7.3 billion
- Theft of 2 million dimes from truckload of coins from US Mint leaves four facing federal charges
Ranking
- Tom Brady Admits He Screwed Up as a Dad to Kids With Bridget Moynahan and Gisele Bündchen
- Turkey’s president submits protocol for Sweden’s admission into NATO to parliament for ratification
- Juvenile arrested in California weeks after shooting outside Denver bar injured 5 people
- 'You want it to hurt': Dolphins hope explosive attack fizzling out vs. Eagles will spark growth
- NBA players express concern for ex-player Kyle Singler after social media post
- Coach keeps QB Deshaun Watson on sideline as Browns upend Colts: 'I wanted to protect him'
- Another dose of reality puts Penn State, James Franklin atop college football Misery Index
- Katharine McPhee Shares Secret to Success of Her and David Foster's Marriage
Recommendation
-
Martha Stewart playfully pushes Drew Barrymore away in touchy interview
-
Former NSA worker pleads guilty to trying to sell US secrets to Russia
-
Grizzlies' Steven Adams to undergo season-ending surgery for knee injury
-
Montana man gets 18 months in federal prison for repeated racist phone calls made to a church
-
Who will be in the top 12? Our College Football Playoff ranking projection
-
Man accused of killing 15-year-old was beaten by teen’s family during melee in Texas courtroom
-
Five Decades and a Mountain of Evidence: Study Explores How Toxic Chemicals are ‘Stealing Children’s Future Potential’
-
Sydney court postpones extradition hearing of former US military pilot until May