In providing employment services, Homeboy targets and focuses on that segment of the community that finds it most difficult to secure employment on their own -- former gang members, parolees, and at-risk youth. Our programs offer a much-needed intervention to those who deserve a second chance at life. Homeboy Industries first venture was The Homeboy Bakery which trained many gang members to become scratch bakers. Homeboy Industries has subsequently launched several additional income-producing ventures which are still thriving: Homeboy Silkscreen, which prints logos on apparel and provides embroidery services; Homeboy Maintenance, which provides landscape maintenance and special landscape installation projects; Homeboy/Homegirl Merchandise, which sells t-shirts, mugs, tote bags, and mouse pads with the Homeboy logo. In response to the community's needs, Homeboy has added new services to address its client's needs and better prepare them for permanent employment outside our own businesses. Our services focus on education, training, financial responsibility and personal accounting to enable them to successfully retain employment.



This collection consists primarily of correspondence written by Homeboy clients and family members to Homeboy founder, Fr. Greg Boyle. In addition there are a selection of Homeboy's administrative papers and documentary video tapes

n.b. accents have been removed to facilitate the use of all web browsers.



Researchers who would like to point out errors of fact or omissions can please contact the research center at www.chicano.ucla.edu

Father Gregory J. Boyle, S.J. is a Jesuit priest who is Founder / Executive Director of Jobs For A Future / Homeboy Industries, an employment referral center and economic development program. Begun in 1988, for at-risk and gang-involved youth, Jobs For A Future is, today, a nationally-recognized center that assists 1,000 people a month in re-directing their lives. Through its unique and multi-service approach, Jobs For A Future offers hope to those for whom hope is often foreign. Located in Boyle Heights, a community with arguably the highest concentration of gang activity in Los Angeles, Jobs For A Future provides employment opportunities, counseling, and many other services (including free tattoo removal). By seeking to address the root causes of gang violence, Jobs For A Future creates opportunities so that at-risk youth can plan their futures and not their funerals. "Nothing stops a bullet like a job" is the guiding principle. In 1992, as a response to the civil unrest in Los Angeles, Father Boyle formed Homeboy Industries, to create businesses that provide training, work experience, and above all, the opportunity for rival gang members to work side by side. The following economic development enterprises have been created since the first venture, Homeboy Bakery: Homeboy Silkscreen, Homeboy / Homegirl Merchandise, Homeboy Graffiti Removal, Homeboy Maintenance, and Homeboy Landscaping. Father Boyle was born in Los Angeles. He received his BA in English from Gonzaga University, an MA in English from Loyola Marymount University, a Master of Divinity from the Weston School of Theology, and an STM degree from the Jesuit School of Theology. Before becoming Pastor of Dolores Mission (1986-1992), Father Boyle taught at Loyola High School and worked with Christian Base Communities in Cochabamba, Bolivia. He has also served as Chaplain of the Islas Marias Penal colony in Mexico and Folsom Prison. He is currently a member of the State Commission on Juvenile Justice, Crime and Delinquency Prevention, and serves on the National Youth Gang Center Advisory Board. As Executive Director of Jobs For A Future / Homeboy Industries, Father Boyle is a nationally renowned speaker at conferences for teachers, social workers and criminal justice workers about the importance of adult attention, guidance and unconditional love in preventing youth from joining gangs.

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