Nonprofits step up to help as majority in Chattanooga's violence reduction call-in meeting seek help

Here, inside a small red-brick-and-cement-block duplex in the heart of Emma Wheeler Homes public housing, out-of-work felons can shed their street uniform for one some of them may never have known. Dress shirt. Tie. Jacket. Some of the labels read J. Crew and Ralph Lauren. Designer duds with a pocketful of possibilities.

These clothes are just one piece of transforming men offered an alternative to crime, a chance to become productive and successful members of the community through the city's violence reduction initiative (VRI).

Read the full story over at TimesFreePress.com.