2 brothers strive to beat odds

Gang life looked almost inevitable for two teenage South Omaha brothers.

Their father was in prison for dealing coke and meth.

Their mother was addicted to drugs.

They lived with an uncle, just seven years older. He’d joined a gang at 14.

And Luis and Enrique — The World-Herald is not using the brothers’ real names out of concern for their safety — acknowledge they were tempted.

“Oh, man, I used to want to be from this ’hood,” Luis said.

Then, showing a maturity beyond his 16 years, he added: “But you start to ask yourself ‘What kind of life is that?’ ”

Although they are at the age gang recruiters target, the brothers say they know the answer to that question.

Their uncle, who lived with them in their grandmother’s home, sent mixed messages. One day he would urge the teens to avoid gangs; the next, he’d boast to friends about what good gangsters they would make.

The brothers said rival gang members shot at the house this past winter. It wasn’t the first time. This time, their uncle wasn’t even home.

“We felt the effects of his gang life. We had to deal with that,” Enrique said. “He wasn’t even there. We don’t deserve that. What did we do?”

They recall hospital visits, like one five years ago after their uncle was stabbed. He twitched so badly from the wounds that he would accidentally push the button to call a nurse.

Now 23, he’s been shot twice, including once in the head by a shotgun-wielding member of a rival gang.

Those memories are among the reasons the brothers give when asked why they’ve stayed away from gangs.

They also point to the influence of mentors, including Alberto “Beto” Gonzales, a Boys & Girls Clubs gang-intervention counselor in South Omaha.

Gonzales has taught them to strive for things they didn’t think they could attain, Enrique said. They credit him for helping them with their spiritual growth and for serving as a father figure.

“Dad wasn’t there to show us how to dress or act,” Luis said.

Gonzales, Enrique said, “taught the two of us to see further than the four blocks of our ’hood, that there is a bigger world out there.”

Released from prison, their father has gotten custody of the boys. They see their mother only occasionally.

Both teens wear baggy clothes and have wispy facial hair. Their grades are improving. Enrique is a C student; Luis is doing a little better.

Outside of school, Luis likes shooting hoops and Enrique writes poetry. Both have part-time jobs.

They also have plans.

The brothers want to join the Marines, then go to college. Both want to be gang counselors. Enrique hopes to be a writer.

“I only have so much time to make something of myself,” Enrique said, “and I’ve gotta use that while I can.”

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