Duke Givens

Board Member

Duke Givens, is a Long Beach native, who grew up in the 6th district and received his education in Long Beach and graduated for Long Beach Poly High School. He also served in the United States Airforce during the Desert Storm conflict, and was honorably discharged.

Soon after he was discharged, he studied Photography at Long Beach City College. Photography would become a staple in Duke’s life. He would go on to create a body of work that has been showcased in different venues and received a multitude of acknowledgements and awards. Some of the accolades include: The NAACP Community Service award, recognition from the US Congress for Community Efforts, the African America Men’s Forum President’s award, and most recently Duke was inducted into the Long Beach City College Hall of Fame.

His passion for helping the most vulnerable among us led him to found the non-profit Care Closet LBC. The core of Care Closet LBC is a steadfast commitment to meeting the needs of our brothers and sisters in the homeless community. They focus on serving people where they are by attending to both their immediate needs and helping facilitate their long term goals. From delivering sleeping bags and new shoes to providing scholarships and employment opportunities, Care Closet rises up to meet the needs of our unhoused brothers and sisters. The tagline has quickly become “LilByLil”. This represents the mission statement of the movement. Givens and his team overcome obstacles by assisting the unhoused population day by day, “LilByLil”. The vision of Care Closet LBC is to meet the essential needs of daily living as well as provide life skills that will result in obtaining self-sufficiency.

Wysm is an organization that teaches individuals truly what law enforcement should be about. To protect and serve, but also love for community is what this organization stands for, I truly believe.