April 9, 1952 – May 22, 2024

(Served as Executive Director of Roll Call from April 2007 – May 2024)

Mr. Milton Golden was born and raised on the Westside of Chicago. A great portion of his youth and adult life was spent in reform schools and penitentiaries, once facing the death penalty. Mr. Golden decided to turn his life around and to do right by himself and others. Mr. Golden started an organization called Brotherhood, in order to promote unity and positive change while incarcerated in hopes of changing ones’ mindset BEFORE they return home from prison. Brotherhood newsletters promoted positive messages, it was an inspiration to the inmates and the guards throughout Cook County jail. Mr. Golden was a true visionary and trendsetter because later the prison authorities started their own paper and stopped the publishing of the Brotherhood newsletter.  When released in 2002 Mr. Golden began to network with several individuals and agencies, informing them of his desire to create a platform to help ex-offenders transition successfully back into communities & to assist at-risk youth in making wiser decisions.  He connected with a few people that shared the same vision and in 2006 Roll Call was formed with some of the same values as Brotherhood. Mr. Golden also started an organization in honor of his grandmother who was slang by those she was helping in the North Lawndale community; the organization was named Geneva Redding Community Angels.

Mr. Golden joined Chicago Area Project, first as an affiliate and later became an employee, through the partnership collaborations, Mr. Golden focused on youth development and violence prevention efforts by organizing community leaders to address curbing the violence in some of the toughest communities throughout Illinois (i.e. North Lawndale, Englewood, and Roseland). He has actively engaged in relevant research within the fields of juvenile justice, criminal justice, and mentoring youth that have served in the juvenile justice system. He would conduct meetings with street gang leaders serving as the mediator to prevent further violence and retaliation after a fatality. He has positively affected thousands of families and could identify creative ways in keeping target populations engaged.  His objective was to reintroduce men and women back into mainstream society and provide them with the support needed to become productive members of society, promote community healing, and reshape public perceptions of the formerly incarcerated. His motto was, “Empowering the Ex-offender, Preventing the Next offender”.  Mr. Golden made this his lifetime commitment. 

The Legacy of Mr. Milton Golden:

• Loyal to family and friends
• Entrepreneur
• Founder of Botherhood & Geneva Redding Community Angels
• Co-founder of Roll Call; also created and ex-offender coalition, United X – the coalition recognized former offenders’ accomplishments & public officials that supported their good works
• His creative side: wrote & produced several plays, and was sought after to participate in meaningful documentaries, that addressed the school to prison pipeline, a Paramount film production, and My Block My Responsibility, a community production
• Real Estate investor

Mr. Milton Golden leaves a legacy of atonement, and redemption.

“Surely, goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.” Psalms 23:6