PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — Raheem Bell hosted his first National Night Out for Stop the Violence, a backpack giveaway and school supply event, on Saturday. But he almost wasn’t able to do something like this, or anything at all.
Bell was shot during a carjacking in Northeast Philadelphia earlier this year.
“April 11, 2022, I was sitting in my vehicle on … Cheltenham Avenue. I was approached by two men. They demanded my vehicle and I was shot two times in my stomach,” he recalled.
He’s channeling the nearly fatal experience as motivation to give back to the community that helped him through the worst time in his life — and what better way than to give kids a safe distraction from ongoing street violence.
“This is for the youth in the community, something positive to end on a good,” he said.
Jessica, a mother who attended the event, was grateful.
“I just like the fact that they give back to the community and they’re doing something for the kids, because if not, these young kids would be out in the street somewhere,” she said.
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Bell and his event partner, Jeffrey Batchler, are planning to form an organization to continue to provide resources to their community.
“Kids need hope and need love, and it’s not been a lot of that over the past year or this summer,” said Batchler.
“God makes no mistakes,” added Bell. “I feel like he put me through it so I can come out of it even bigger and better.”