Better Family Life, Inc. may be losing perhaps its most public face, but it remains open to the business of community service.
James Clark, longtime vice president of Community Outreach for BFL, has accepted a position as vice president of Community Engagement and Public Safety for the Urban League of Metropolitan St. Louis, as was reported here last week. A new statement from BFL now places his start date there at August 1.
“He grew our Community Outreach department to become one of the most respected and important institutions in the country, with a goal of making our neighborhoods and streets safe,” Malik Ahmed, founder and CEO of BFL, said of Clark in a statement,
“The work of BFL’s Community Outreach Department has helped to restore hope for hundreds of families that have been the victims of violence and heinous crimes. In this work he has brought together families of victims, community leaders, civil and business leaders, pastors, and the corporate community to coordinate a joint response to the escalation of street crime. From his tireless efforts the St. Louis metropolitan area now has a framework for community engagement and activism.”
However, the work at BFL will continue in Clark’s absence. Ahmed said that its Housing Department, Workforce Department, Youth Family and Clinical Services Department, Cultural Arts Department and Community Outreach Department continue to distribute food to those who are food-insecure, work with schools to provide lesson plans, provide clients with necessary resources to equip them with their careers during and after this crisis along with many other services.
“While we are saddened by the loss of such a valued employee,” stated Etefia Umana, chairman of the board of Better Family Life, “we are equally excited for the new opportunities it creates for further collaboration and expansion of our mission.”
For more information on BFL, visit https://www.betterfamilylife.org/ or call 314-367-3440.
