SAN JOSE, CALIF.—Danny Sanchez and his team, The City Peace Project, aim to spread peace and wellness across the East Side, and have built a positive reputation at Silver Creek High School. 

Sanchez, otherwise known as Pastor Danny, is the founder and executive director of The City Peace Project. Sanchez had some rough teenage years, always getting into trouble. He “grew up in a juvenile incarceration system and lived a violent life, including police brutality, suicide attempts, and surviving multiple stabbings,” The unfortunate events that happened to him shaped him into the person he is today. 

He’s tried his hardest to turn his life around and has now dedicated himself to helping troubled youth, something he wanted someone to do for him when he was younger. His book, “Post Traumatic Quest: My Quest to Transcend Trauma, Turn My Pain Into Purpose, and Find Peace”, says that, “Today Danny is a city chaplain and the founder of The City Peace Project non-profit organization in San Jose, California where he inspires youth through innovation as social entrepreneur.” For his efforts for peace he was awarded the White House Champion of Change in youth violence prevention in 2012, by President Barack Obama.

His first tasks started in San Jose. Sanchez went around helping grieving families who were dealing with loss. This was the first step towards a peaceful community. Sanchez said that the idea for The City Peace Project “came from my heart. I didn’t have anyone to guide or mentor me when I was young and I wanted to be the person that I needed when I was younger.” And he added, “I wanted to be somebody that could encourage and inspire others because I wish that someone would’ve done that with me.” 

“The mission of The City Peace Project is to mentor and advocate for students so that they could see their value and have peace with themselves and others.” says Sanchez. “We know that if you have peace with yourself and others then we will have a peaceful campus and a peaceful community.” 

Sanchez works with the entire East Union district, which includes Silver Creek High School, and he came to this school when there was “a lot of stuff going on here and the school needed extra support.” He now has lots of connections with the students at this school. With him at Silver Creek a lot of the youth feels more supported. From giving out food to doing lunch time rallies, The City Peace Project’s impact can be seen, positively affecting youth and leading them on a path for better futures.