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On February 28, during our virtual Sunday service, we welcomed Boston Police Officer Darryl Owens, a co-founder of the Boston Police Teen Academy, which focuses on building a bridge between police officers and urban youth. The Boston Teen Police Academy was founded in July 2010 by Owens and fellow officer William Baxter. Owens’ personal history figures prominently in the understanding of the need for the BTPA. When he was a youth and living in an urban neighborhood, Owens witnessed a violent murder of a family member. Owens chose the path of law enforcement but in retrospect realizes how easily he could have taken a very different and negative route to adulthood. The Boston Teen Police Academy was developed to be “here to serve” as a viable and living role model that embodies leadership, trust and community as an alternative path out of the cycle of challenges urban youths face.