Columbia
2012 Director’s Community Leadership Awards
Columbia | Stacey D. Haynes |
The Columbia Division is pleased to honor Stacey D. Haynes, an advocate for reducing gun violence, as a recipient of the 2012 Director’s Community Leadership Award. Ms. Haynes serves the judicial system as the assistant United States attorney for the District of South Carolina, but she serves her community as a volunteer, a mentor for juveniles, the coordinator for Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), and the anti-gang coordinator for South Carolina. In 2002, Ms. Haynes established the PSN program and introduced a statewide educational campaign to deter and prevent gun violence. Each October, Ms. Haynes coordinates South Carolina’s participation in the National Day of Concern About Young People and Gun Violence, when students sign a pledge to not bring a gun to school or use a gun to resolve a dispute. Through PSN’s Project ChildSafe, Ms. Haynes has provided hundreds of gun locks to homeowners and schools (for distribution during parent-teacher meetings). Since 2006, Ms. Haynes has mentored the state’s most troubled youth at the Department of Juvenile Justice. She says she believes the only way to reduce violence is to show our children that there’s always another way. |