Eric Adams
Lead Violence Interrupter
eadams@youthalive.org | (510) 594-2588 x325
Eric Adams came to Youth ALIVE! from Building Futures, a homeless services organization in San Leandro. Eric grew up in West Oakland’s Acorn neighborhood, where early on he fell into the street life, got in trouble, got hooked on drugs, got shot, got arrested. He lost his 19-year-old son Erin to the violence here in 2012. There was a time in his life when “dreams disappeared and hope was nowhere to be found,” he says. Eric is clean now, has been for over seven years. But it wasn’t easy. “When I was still in the grips of the lifestyle, I wanted to quit, to be clean,” he says. “But wanting to and knowing how are two different things.” That’s the beauty of his job now. Eric and his outreach team can bring options, solutions, a path out for young people who are ready but don’t know where to turn or who to turn to. He can help them be safe, get back to school, get mental health services, get in recovery. And he can be a model to young Oaklanders who hope for a better future.