It’s always kids’ stuff with John Bailey

AURORA | On a warm early summer afternoon on a Denver community field, young athletes practice football drills and run plays myriad times, adjusting their footwork, re-running their routes and taking the advice of a man who they hold in high regard.

John Bailey calls for a huddle, and boys from across the Aurora-Denver metro area eagerly gather around.

You can see from the rapt attention the boys give their coach how much they want to hear what they say. Bailey deftly switches from football moves to a pep talk about the importance of the opportunity the youth have laid out in front of them.

Bailey hopes his words resonate with the youth because he has had those opportunities for success in his own life.

Bailey, 73, is an icon among these kids, and among politicians, activists and others who care about them, especially at a time when youth violence is sounding alarms across the region.

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Bailey has long been a feature on the scene of youth sports and youth-violence prevention. He’s regularly, however, in the front of the room, just not in front of the cameras.

After growing up poor in the Jim Crow era South, he attended Wagner College on a scholarship.  He played professional basketball. He now leads multiple Black community-centric organizations.

He said who he was as a child is directly linked to who he is now. 

From a young age, Bailey’s grandmother took him and the rest of his family to church not just on Sundays, but multiple times a week. It was an act, he says, that shaped morals and work ethic that had guided his life.

For nearly half a century, Bailey has dedicated pieces of himself to giving the same guidance to others.

Denver County Sheriff Elias Diggins, once a youth camper himself under Bailey’s coaching, has seen that community dedication firsthand.

“When I was growing up [in Montbello] in the eighties, all the kids in the community knew who John Bailey was,” Diggins said. “He was just a great person in the community who really loved all the kids. He gave us tough love, but also would uplift you and give you words of encouragement.”

Bailey says he knows how important those words can be as a teen.

He knew struggle from a young age, growing up in a poor family in Danville, Virginia.

“We were poor, we were Black and we were at a disadvantage,” Bailey said. “In the segregated South, when it came to Black people, if you didn’t watch your tone, you could be beaten or killed.”

In similar situations, Bailey emphasizes the importance of keeping a clear head and staying close to people who cared and supported him. Bailey most notably credits his grandmother, who he affectionately calls Ms. Price, for keeping his head on straight. 

Price acted as a guide for Bailey, constantly talking about discipline and respect, as well as anything else needed for him to overcome the odds and succeed.

“For a young Black boy in America at that time, I was glad that she would do that because it probably saved my life down the road,” Bailey said. “If you wanted the situation to be different, then you had to work hard for whatever you want.”

All of these lessons helped Bailey develop the hard work mindset that pushed him to reach goals in his adult life.

Bailey went on to graduate from Brunswick High School in Monmouth, New Jersey and continue to pursue higher education on an athletic scholarship to Wagner College.

His athleticism would take him to the American
Basketball Association in the 1970s, where a special circumstances draft would assign him to the Virginia Squires.

Eventually, Bailey took his first steps toward community involvement, where he would work as a community
organizer and later become Executive Director of the Princeton Youth Center.

Bailey and his family made their way to Denver in 1976, where they became directly involved in multiple organizations in the Colorado community and took on multiple leadership roles in local and national campaigns.

Bailey’s efforts eventually led him to work for both the Bush and Clinton administrations’ plans for community development. This included working as liaisons in anti-drug programs as well as developing nationwide strategies to target gang violence and juvenile drug use.

Now, Bailey is one of the leaders of Colorado Black Round Table, a Black-focused organization providing advocacy for Black residents in Colorado. He also founded the Black Cannabis Equity Initiative, an organization that collaborates with other Denver metro and Colorado dispensaries to create and fund diversity, equity and inclusion efforts for residents.

Bailey was not alone in a family dedicated to community service. His wife, Dr. Sharon Bailey, had a deep commitment to equity and advancing equal opportunity for all, becoming a well-known and popular leader in Denver Public Schools. Together, the Baileys dedicated their lives to service for Denver.

Sharon Bailey died in 2021 at age 68.

The Baileys’ reputation as champions of community support has garnered the respect of those around them, including other major names in Colorado politics such as Attorney General Phil Weiser.

“When John Bailey calls a meeting to focus on important issues, whether it’s equal opportunities in school, gun violence or school safety, people show up,” Weiser said. “John commands such respect. People know him as a leader and an advocate for everyone. When I think about John and Sharon, both are civil rights champions and tremendous advocates, not just in the Black community but for all people in Denver to live the best lives they can.”

A significant amount of Bailey’s work has been dedicated to giving back the dedication and support that he was shown as a child.

Now, Bailey wants to do the same with the next generation of youth, and youth football camps like the one he held earlier this summer are just the first step.

“If you gain some skills and some insights, then you’ve got to bring something back,” Bailey said. “So I spent time trying to figure out what kind of impact could have on young people.”

Through all of his organizations, Bailey hopes to create opportunities that will allow kids who have or will face struggles in their life to learn effective skills to navigate those difficulties.

His work in the Colorado Black Round Table specifically focuses on tackling youth violence and creating programs that ensure that Denver youth have safe and bright futures.

Ultimately, Bailey hopes his efforts in politics, diversity, inclusion and youth outreach will leave a positive impact on the future generations of Denver youth and beyond.

“Life deals you curveballs when you’re young, and you don’t always get support. There’s a reason that that kid is struggling,” Bailey said. “You’ve gotta ask him, ‘What type of human being do you want to be?’ We’ve gotta teach them what they want with different lessons and experiences that are going to open up their minds. Every generation should be bringing the next generation more.”

Meet Jevon “JJ” McKinney

Jevon “JJ” McKinney is a student at Colorado State who serves as Chief Investigative Anchor for CTV Channel 11 — CSU’s campus TV station — and has interned at Colorado Public Radio and KKTV 11. He has covered race, culture, social activism and investigative accountability in breaking news fashion and through features. His ultimate goal is to give a voice to historically marginalized people.