Two community activists shared their stories with 21 News about how selling drugs and participating in violence led them to prison for close to three decades.

Now, they have a passion for making the community safer with an anti-violence coalition and the plan is to mentor, educate and protect the community.

"We have to have men step up, who've been through what we've been through, step up and say man this ain't what it's supposed to be, instead of man, these youngsters they gone man, we can't do nothing with them," said Will 'Shimmie' Miller, community activist. "No man, I don't believe that," he said.

Miller and his colleague Darnell Walker Sr. feel they have a responsibilty to the community.

"I don't care what community I'm in, I wanna help change, whatever community I'm in because I basically destroyed one," Walker said. "And if you destroy one, you really destroy all," he said.

They're working with the city of Youngstown to create their vision.

During the day they plan to have mentorship programs, in-school panels, education and leadership programs.

During the night, they plan to take to the streets and actively combat violence.

"We going to the bars, we gone be seen, we gone be active but also trained," said Miller. "This is what I like about the fact that we have the city's support because we gone be trained in de-escalation," he said.

Miller says the violent behavior we're seeing in the city is a manifestation of internal hurt and loss. He says it's a cognitive situation that he wants to help change among those caught up in the culture of drugs and violence.

Walker says the most recent shootings Youngstown suffered, with the death of a 10 year old girl and 40 year old man plus four others wounded, should have had the community ready to make a change.

"No 10 year old little girl should be happy one day and then dead the next day," said Walker. "It shouldn't be that and you know, that right there should spark anybody and everybody to do something," he said.

Miller and Walker are asking anyone in the community who wants to be a part of the anti-violence coalition to join them at the Oak Hill Collaborative building, 507 Oak Hill Avenue, on Sunday August 22 at noon to discuss the program.

"My personal vision is to create a sense of protection for people to start coming back out and enjoying life. You got people who's scared to go anywhere," said Miller.

"Realistically, you're not going to stop all the violence but if you could slow it down, it's a start," Walker said. What we're doing here, hopefully can go beyond here," he said.

They hope to start the program within the next 30 days.