For school children, some Chicago streets can be a dangerous place.

While the city of Chicago has seen steadily declining murder rates since the peak in early-1990s, some neighborhoods remain comparatively violent. The "crime gap" in neighborhoods like Englewood and Austin is reflected in murder rates some 10 times higher than the rest of the city.听For听students who must navigate these neighborhoods on their way to school, every day can be a struggle. The city's 2013 closure of dozens of schools increased the commute times of many students, exacerbating the problem.听

This is precisely why a group of veterans working for the group听Leave No Veteran Behind, through Chicago's Safe Passage program work to protect children living in some of the city's roughest neighborhoods.

The non-profit program, started by Iraq and Afghanistan veterans听Roy Sartin and Eli Williamson, "invests in heroes," helping to find employment and education opportunities for out-of-work military veterans.

"This isn't just volunteerism, but actual work," Eli Williamson, co-founder of Leave No Veteran Behind,听told听The Huffington Post. "It provides flexibility to go and look for alternate employment."

Increasing intimidation and violence, including a 2009 cell-phone video of a gruesome after-school fight in which听honor student Darrion Albert was killed, prompted Chicago schools to start the Safe Passage program, with the aim of protecting students commuting to and from school.听

Safe passage relies on community organizations like Leave No Veteran Behind to hire and manage workers to staff the program's routes.听More than 400 veterans have participated in听the Safe Passage program. On any given school day, roughly 130 veterans are out on the streets.

"This has visibly decreased youth violence in these areas," said Williamson.

Safe Passage may also be having a positive impact on the lives of students who previously attended the now shuttered schools. According to a report from the Chicago Public Schools:

Violence on Safe Passage routes does still occur, however. Chicago's WBEZ reported that in 2013 shootings and assaults remained common near Safe Passage routes. The city doubled the number of Safe Passage workers in 2013.

听"We're here faithfully; we've been here since day one," veteran听Bernard听Cooks told NPR in 2011. "Our intention is to be here until the last day so kids can figure out that, 'Hey, there's somebody that actually cares about our safety.'"