Mayoral primary runner-up launches Wilmington nonprofit

Eugene Young will launch his “social advocacy” nonprofit called Network Delaware on Monday night in Wilmington.

Young, who was just 146 votes away from winning the Democratic primary for Wilmington mayor, will lead the nonprofit group. The goal of the group is to encourage social change.

“This is all about grassroots advocacy,” Young said. “There are a lot of people who are looking for opportunities to get involved, who want to become more engaged and make a difference.”

Young currently works as advocacy director at the Delaware Center for Justice. He ran a mayoral campaign that outperformed seven out of eight candidates in the Democratic primary, including then-Mayor Dennis Williams. Expect this new venture to focus on themes Young advocated during that campaign.

During a debate last spring, Young touted his fresh ideas that would bring the community together and provide resources for those in need. “We have neighborhoods that have been neglected for years. We have kids who are suffering and hurting and this didn’t just happen yesterday,” he said last May. “We have to have a larger vision and we have to understand that it doesn’t matter about ones age to the impact they can create.”