Spotlight: Danny Sanchez: Blessed are the Peacemakers
Danny Sanchez is a lifelong San Jose resident and the Founder and Executive Director of The City Peace Project. A youth violence prevention activist and Latino leadership advocate, he serves as the volunteer Lead Chaplain for the City of San Jose Mayor’s Gang Prevention Task Force and Lead Chaplain for the Santa Clara County Valley Medical Hospital Peer Intervention Program, Trauma to Triumph.
If The City Peace Project had existed when Danny was a teen, his life might have followed a very different path. But it was his challenging personal experiences that inspired him to found the organization. “I didn’t really have any guidance when I was young,” he recalls. “I made a lot of mistakes. I got in trouble at school. I was suspended a lot for fighting. I went to Juvenile Hall for the first time when I was 14. That was a terrible, traumatizing experience for me.”
Danny says he was justice involved for most of his youth, serving time at both San Quentin and Folsom State Prisons, but everything changed when at the age of 29 he accepted Christ.
“I had a near death experience. Up to that point in my life, I didn’t care if I lived or died, but when I actually stared death in the eyes, I wanted to live. I had a radical transformation and I’ve never been the same.”
Radically Transformed
“I know what it feels like to have no peace, to try to find some sort of meaning for life. I want to be the person I wish I had when I was younger,” says Danny, who is the father of five children he shares with his wife, Abby, in a blended family.
In 2010 he created a crisis response program for the Gang Task Force to provide spiritual care, direction, and support for the families of kids impacted by youth violence. Funding the outreach was difficult. Danny remembers, “We tried to raise support, but that first year we only raised $7000. I did odd jobs to bring in money. I’d wear a suit to speak at the Mayor’s Faith Leaders breakfast at City Hall in the morning and when I was done, I’d change and go do handyman work. But God did provide for us.”
A tragic event propelled Danny to start The City Peace Project in 2012. “I was doing a funeral for a young man who died in a gang-related homicide. He was a senior in high school, the only son of a single dad. We were in a small chapel that was packed with people who all wanted to share how much they loved him. They spoke for more than two hours.
“I stood there looking at these people, who are high, angry, sad, or expressionless, and I felt like the Lord was telling me, ‘They are like sheep without a shepherd.’ I realized I needed to shepherd these kids. I felt called to become proactive rather than help families after their loss and that was the birth of the City Peace Project.”
Today TCPP boasts a team of ten who focus on mentoring, life coaching, conflict resolution, gang prevention, and intervention. Six San Jose churches partner with the organization. Although ministry activities like Bible study happen off campus, tutoring and mentoring take place at school. “We started in a couple of schools, but now work with over 30. Our staff probably sees 200 – 300 kids a week,” says Danny.
Proactive Peacemaking
During the pandemic TCPP pivoted quickly to provide support for the under-resourced families of their students like food, clothing, and rent. The material needs were overwhelming, but through church partnerships the organization was enabled to respond.
When the kids returned to school Danny noticed the mental and emotional toll lockdown had taken. “I think there was a lot of fear about going back to school. There were fights every week and kids weren’t responding to me in the same way they used to. I prayed, ‘God, how am I going to reach these kids?’ I felt like the Lord told me, ‘Feed them just like Jesus did.’”
Danny calls it proactive peacemaking. He explains, “One thing God showed me is that the opposite of pain and trauma is joy and fun. We bring food to school. We do social media giveaways. Churches like Westgate, Venture, and Spectrum Church have been tremendously supportive with resources for this.”
Recently Danny designed a peacemaker leadership program that TCPP is piloting at a local public high school. “This is new for us. Usually, we work with students who have behavioral issues, but with this program instead of just doing prevention and invention, we’re going to develop leaders.”
Although Danny and the TCPP team have training and certification, they identify themselves as mentors; “We know when something is out of our scope of service and when to refer kids. We work very closely with social workers in the wellness centers in the schools.”
The TCPP Model
Danny has a vision to replicate TCPP beyond San Jose. Recently he began working in the Milpitas school district and with contacts in Boston, Chicago, and Los Angeles, Danny envisions expanding the reach nationwide. “The City Peace Project is a manifestation of my heart – what I needed. Every school needs a program like this. I want to see The City Peace Project not only in every school in San Jose but around the country.”
Danny has written the book, Post Traumatic Quest: My Quest to Transcend Trauma, Turn My Pain into Purpose, and Find Peace about his life. He’s given a copy to every youth incarcerated in Santa Clara County. “I wrote the book to give kids I work with hope. I thought that as a 14-year-old with a felony my life was over. I flirted with suicide. I didn’t care if I lived or died, but I made it beyond by my faith in Jesus Christ. I want kids to know they can make it beyond their current circumstances, too.”