TOLEDO, Ohio — Violent crime can leave families with the task of picking up the pieces.
Oftentimes, children are left behind.
This is where Operation It Takes A Village comes in, to provide some relief.
"My family was directly impacted by the recent surge of violence, as Natasha Carlisle was my cousin," Carla Baucom, founder of Operation It Takes A Village, said.
Baucom has been left speechless, thinking back to November of last year, when someone gunned down Carlisle and her friend Laura Luckey.
"After Natasha and Laura were taken, and they left behind seven children," Baucom said. "And then Ashley Darrington, Whitney Wade, Sarah Schulte came along, and they left even more children. A total of 15 children. To me, that's equivalent to the size of a classroom."
As an educator and family member of a victim, she knew she had to do something.
So she came up with Operation It Takes A Village.
The group is asking people to come together and donate things like clothes, food and other household items.
"Having those essentials will take the burden off the family so that they can handle their mental health," said Angie Martinez, a committee member with Operation It Takes A Village.
It's not just adults. Kids are struggling too.
"The children are in transition. Some of them have been snatched out of their homes, have moved out. Families have to move the deceased's things out of the home," Baucom said. "The children have to be uprooted."
These volunteers say that a little bit of help goes a long way and helps survivors know they're not alone.
"Definitely takes a village you know to heal, to get better, to change things. And they say it takes a village, and we are the village," Gwendolyn Pettaway, a committee member with Operation It Takes A Village, said. "We are trying to be that change, that help."
Operation It Takes A Village is already collecting items at several locations, or you can give donations at Toledo Urban Credit Union on Dorr Street.
Also, on April 3, they're hosting a drop-off event at the Frederick Douglass Central located at 1001 Indiana Ave.
They would like to send a big thank you to everyone who has played a part in this operation.