‘Summer in the City: Safe Summer Nights’ helping kids and teens..

INDIANAPOLIS — Free summer programming for kids in downtown Indianapolis is bringing in big numbers.

It’s all part of a partnership with Let Them Talk and the Indianapolis Office of Public Health and Safety (OPHS).

“It’s a citywide initiative for youth across the city to be able to come into a safe space to be able to connect with each other to network to learn about different community organizations that are here across the city,” said Dr. Heather Savage, executive director and co-founder of Let Them Talk.

It’s known as “Summer in the City: Safe Summer Nights.” The program works with kids and teens ages 12-17 to keep them engaged in meaningful activities so they can enjoy a fun summer while staying out of trouble.

“The goal is to make sure that youth across the city have something to do,” Savage said. “This is what they’ve been asking for. They’ve been asking for safe spaces. They’ve been asking for things to do. That is the goal for us to be able to give them those opportunities, bring them to where we are to try to take them out of their environments and expose them to something different.”

It’s every Friday and Saturday night from now until Aug. 29. In addition to games, music, and activities, there are also special workshops focusing on a variety of topics ranging from mental health awareness to financial literacy.

“This year we’ve introduced community partners into this scenario so we have different community partners that will be coming in throughout the summer and they will be teaching anything from healthy relationships to life skills,” Savage said. 

Additionally, there are fun field trips planned to places like the Roller Cave. 

“The goal here is to keep kids safe. The goal here is to give kids an alternative to making poor choices, to being involved in violent activities or behaviors,” Savage said. “The goal here is to be able to have alternatives to things that will keep them out of trouble.”

This comes as youth violence numbers are trending down from previous years. New data from IMPD shows that so far in 2026, there were three homicides and 22 robberies involving juveniles. Additionally, curfew violations for this year are at 15.

IMPD keeps a close eye on all of this data. Looking at robberies, for example, they are trending down significantly. Back in 2021 and 2022, the number of robberies for the year were above 100. (121 robberies for 2021 and 108 robberies for 2022).

“Based on the data, teen violence is down,” said Tommy Thompson with IMPD via email. “It has steadily been coming back down the past three years.”

There is a lot more planned for kids and teens over the course of the next several weeks through “Summer in the City: Safe Summer Nights.”

“Get your kids involved,” Savage said. “There are things that are available for them. There are people that care about them. There are safe spaces for them to be and all we need you to do is get them to us.”

Organizers tell us attendance numbers are already exceeding expectations and summer is just getting started.

“Our transportation provider told us that we are hitting every single school district except for one, so we have kids that are coming from literally all across the city to be a part of this programming,” Savage said.

The next event is happening on Friday, June 26 from 6 p.m. to 10 p.m. at The Spot, 9501 E. 36th Place. There will also be an event on Saturday night from 6 p.m. to 10 p.m. at the Big Brothers Big Sisters of Central Indiana on 1433 N. Meridian St.

Again, the program is free but registration is required. To learn more and to fill out a registration form, click here. Transportation can also be arranged.