Atlanta home where 92-year-old woman killed by police, now non-profit to help youth

ATLANTA - A home that belonged to a woman who was shot and killed by police, is now the new home for an organization that helps Atlanta's youth. 

It is the home on Neal Street where Kathryn Johnston lived. In 2006 Johnston was shot and killed by police when they were serving a no-knock warrant and went to the wrong address.

The home on Neal Street in Atlanta is now the new headquarters for the non-profit, HEY! Helping Empower Youth.

"We really want to use this space to honor Mrs. Johnston by how we serve our community," said KaCey Venning, HEY! Executive Director.

HEY! helps young people in the community get on the right path in life.

"We aid in academic achievement, job readiness skills, but really to help them build the confidence they need to be successful," said Venning.

HEY! took over the house in April 2021. At that time, the house had been virtually untouched since the night Kathryn Johnston was killed. Many of her things, including furniture were still inside. The wall calendar was from 2006.

For 18 months volunteers with HEY! worked alongside some of the teens they mentor renovating the home.

Now, it is ready to go. Marc Boyd gave FOX5 a tour.

"This is Ms. Johnston's bedroom, this is where everything happened, we'll turn this into a work space and zen space," said Boyd.

The teens in the HEY! program have learned about what happened here. While this will be their new beginning, they won't forget about the 92-year-old woman whose life came to a tragic end.

"We wanted to be able to show young people, who may have to deal with tragedy on a regular basis, that something good can come from it if you're intentional about what you want to do with it," said Venning.

There will be a grand opening for the community, with a ribbon cutting, at 11 a.m. Saturday.