Ely Flores is an individual who was born into an environment of gangs, drugs, and police brutality. He had to overcome his father’s abandonment and his family’s state of poverty. Ely Flores is a graduate of LA CAUSA YouthBuild. Since Ely completed the program he has worked directly with communities through the organizations of Youth Justice Coalition and Public Allies Los Angeles. Ely’s experiences’ has helped him to triumph over many obstacles and struggles in his life. He never loses sight of helping and empowering people. Ely is now working for Youth Build USA, through LA CAUSA to develop and implement a program that will empower youth who have been affected by the justice system. Ely is on the verge of establishing an identity term created for Central American descendents who desire to own their identity for empowerment reasons. Ely is also a father to a beautiful baby boy who he loves with all his heart. He is determined to break the cycle of father abandonment in his family. A quote from Ely, “Because of God I am alive and that means I have to believe liberty, think critically, and act revolutionary” Ely is only 19 years of age.