About Us
Hear My Cries, is a 501(c) nonprofit agency, located in Newark, New Jersey. It is the hope for Hear My Cries to expand our work to other counties in New Jersey and beyond. We understand that people impacted by gun violence is a national pandemic and we are striving to combat the trauma inflicted and provide resources for healing on a national level.
OUR MISSION
Women impacted by gun violence coming together to empower, support, create & develop programs to intervene and prevent the affects of gun violence and change in our communities
Purpose Through Pain
Today, April 24, 2026, is a full-circle moment for me.
Ten years ago, on this very day, I was shot as an innocent bystander. In an instant, my life changed forever. But I still didn’t see myself as a victim.
Then I experienced a loss that changed everything… the murder of my only child, my son, Avent.
That kind of grief shifts you. You can either sink… or rise with purpose.
And it was from that heartbreak that Hear My Cries was born, a safe space where voices are heard, grief is acknowledged, and healing can begin.
Today, the same date that once marked trauma now also marks purpose. This award is not just for me.
It’s for every mother, every family, every survivor still navigating this journey. It belongs to the community… and to those we’ve lost.. especially my son, AVENT.
Thank you to the Essex County Prosecutor’s Office and Pamela McCauley for seeing us and lifting up this work.
Pain can still give birth to purpose.
Felicia James
Founder,
Hear My Cries NJ
