Salinas woman turns life around, asks more to do the same

Gang violence is spiking across the Central Coast and now some who know the lifestyle well, are asking the community to step up. NewsChannel 5 talked to a woman who spent years turning her life around and wants to help others do the same. Carol Cervantes has spent years showing gang members there are other ways to live life.

“Basically help and just and not be so negative in the way that you know, those people aren’t going to change and stop wasting tax dollars on them,” Cervantes said.

Guns, drugs and gang affiliation are all things Cervantes said she experienced as grew up. She went to juvenile hall for the first time at 13; her husband is in prison for his involvement in a shooting; her brother just got out of prison. Cervantes said a job at the Salvation Army was a turning point in her life.

“They just took me exactly as I was and that was what I needed. Somebody to take me, exactly where I was, how I was and kind of just, it is what it is,” Cervantes said.

Now Cervantes has her own business in Old Town Salinas and is asking more people to give troubled kids a chance. Cervantes said eventually she hopes to show kids there’s a way out of the violence by hiring some to work at her shop.

She’s spent time working with non-profits in Salinas, like Shelter Outreach Plus and Second Chance. That’s where she came across 18-year-old Jose Regalado, now accused of trying to kill a 13-year-old on Santa Rita Street on Saturday night.

“It’s hard to see, especially if you’re familiar with some of these kids,” Cervantes said.

She wants people to see past the mug shot and understand there’s a kid who needs help.

“Giving them hope, when you just have a regular conversation with them,” Cervantes said.

For those who are skeptical, Cervantes said she’s proof people can change.

“You know the same way it did with me. I didn’t listen right then and there. But ten years later, it did sink in,” Cervantes said.

Even though it took a while for Cervantes, she said the only real way to make a dent in the city’s problem with gangs, is to start at home. She even admits to calling out family members who should be setting a good example.