Teen Empowerment opens new center, keeps same mission

Last year, 16-year-old Tyquan Evans was waiting for the bus on Blue Hill Avenue, just outside Fessenden Street. A group of young men drove by and eventually made a U-turn to head toward Evans.

The car slowly approached and what happened next took Evans by surprise. Shots rang out, forcing Evans to duck, unaware of the direction of the bullets. Evans fortunately survived, but the shooters reached their target. One of the teens sitting on a nearby porch was shot.

"I was scared, but in my head, I was thinking, 'That could have been me,'" said Evans.

Evans said he thought he was the only person his age to feel frustrated by the seemingly never-ending cycle of violence …