The HHS-OMH grant required a pre-summit half-day retreat to plan a regional minority health Summit on gun violence. Over 60 participants of African ancestry at the half-day retreat represented four generations of cohorts, including and mandated input from the youth panel of 10-18-year-olds who held the “village” spellbound with their concerns for over two hours. Community role models participating in the half-day retreat included doctors, nurses, lawyers, clergy, educators, students, parishioners, judges, social workers, police officers, parents, and youth from diverse populations in the community, including the Connecticut Foster Care and Juvenile Justice systems. The half-day retreat and Summit planted the seed that birthed the non-profit, Salvaging the African American Village (SAAV) Incorporated in 2017.