For the ninth consecutive year, the 79924 ZIP code in Northeast El Paso is one of the 15 in Texas with highest incidences of juvenile crime, according to the state Department of Family and Protective Services.

A large military influx, lack of activities for children and low socioeconomic status are some of the factors that contribute to juvenile crime in the area, said Slade Davis, Northeast Community Services police officer. "Children usually claim there is nothing to do, both parents are always working and children hang out with the only family they have - gangs," he said. Davis said much of the gang activity was traced back to military families. In addition, he said, an influx of gang members from larger cities has occurred because of El Paso's border location.

This year, the Department of Family and Protective Services invested $500,000 in programs for children who live or go to school in the 79924 area through the Community Youth Development Program. "The main goal is to prevent juvenile delinquency," said Rosi Casas, community youth development coordinator. About 1,600 children in the 79924 ZIP code are registered in some type of activity under the program.

But the goal is to provide services to at least 3,000 teenagers, Casas said. The Community Youth Development Program partners with nonprofit organizations to create a system that can steer kids in a good direction.

The YWCA El Paso del Norte Region is one of the eight organizations in the Northeast that provide services for young people through the program. Alison Leiman, YWCA team leadership program coordinator, said that under the Community Youth Development grant, her organization serves an average of 400 teenagers every year at its in-school, after school and summer youth leadership programs.

Brittany Sheets, 17, said she lives with her family in a quiet neighborhood in the 79924 ZIP code. But at school, drugs, gangs and violence are common topics, she said. "Programs like this keep us away from violence," Brittany said. She learned about the basics of journalism while participating in the YWCA summer youth leadership program. Brittany said she believed the program helped improve the community by keeping teenagers off the streets. She will be a senior at Andress High School and she wants to become a teacher, she said.

Sophomore Vanessa Chavez, 15, said the program taught her something different and helpful. She loves to write, and it enabled her to craft stories for a newsletter. It also introduced her to photography. "Here, we don't worry about grades and we still give our best," Vanessa said. Casas said the program requires most children to be between 10 and 17, ages when many kids stray. Vanessa Chavez has other ideas. "We can have tons of fun without getting in trouble," she said.