Operation Shoestring

Operation Shoestring was founded in 1968 amid the turmoil of the Civil Rights era as a safe, supportive space for kids and families. OS provides direct services reflecting the needs and dreams of our neighbors while striving to build an ecosystem of equity and opportunity that supports the well-being of everyone in Jackson. OS is a space where people from different races, religions, and life experiences in our community come together to address systemic inequity and its legacy in our city and state.

Operation Shoestring primarily serves the Georgetown, Virden Addition, Mid-City and Midtown neighborhoods in the heart of central Jackson, just a stone’s throw from Mississippi’s capitol building. The residents of these neighborhoods are predominantly Black, low-income, and experience a high level of health, economic, and social inequities due to deep-rooted systemic oppression. Neighborhood families have identified fear of community violence, concern about education quality, poor health outcomes, and the lack of good economic opportunities as their primary concerns. Against those headwinds, though, parents and other community members express a strong desire for greater agency and partnerships to change their trajectories.