A day in the life: Harry Grammer

Four men of light neutral skin tone on a boat that says waterkeeper

Where Ocean and Community Connect

After a personal encounter with the juvenile justice system, Obama Fellow Harry Grammer found his purpose in life: to help other justice system-involved youth build a brighter future for themselves. He founded  New Earth (Opens in a new tab) to mentor and empower at-risk youth to transform their lives through art, poetry, educational, and vocational programs.

Dive into an outing Harry took with his mentees and  LA Waterkeeper (Opens in a new tab), a marine protection agency, in an effort to expand their horizons.

A collage of a hand holding a baby octopus and two men of light neutral skin tone holding a net/bag

“ I was one of these young people. I spent five years on juvenile probation as a young man. I left home at 18-years-old. I was a college drop out. I realized that the best thing I could do is help young people who may have traveled down the same path as I did.”

–Harry Grammer
Three men with light skin tones drives a boat on the sea
In addition to group activities like these with LA Waterkeeper, New Earth offers counseling, job training, mentoring, and educational programs for young people ages 13-25.
A man with light skin tones takes a picture on the outside of a boat while out at sea
“We need to listen to our young people and find out what they’re longing for and what they need.”—Harry Grammer
Four men with different skin tones surrounding each other on a boat
Harry’s organization, New Earth, has slashed recidivism rates from 69 percent to 5 percent among its full participants.
A man with a medium skin tone is shown outside in front of boats looking forward toward the camera.
"The experiences I had struggling through homelessness and juvenile probation actually gave me the heart to create something like this.” —Harry Grammer on starting New Earth