BOSTON -- Religious leaders joined together Tuesday to announce the creation of a fund that would continue the work of a young peace activist who was unable to escape street violence.

NewsCenter 5's Janet Wu reported that Jahmol Norfleet was one of the key figures in brokering a gang truce in Boston. That truce was broken when Norfleet, who would have turned 21 Tuesday, was gunned down and killed last week.

"An African prophet declares, 'No man is fully dead until his memory is forgotten.' We are here to declare that Jahmol Norfleet and the peace for which he worked is not going to be forgotten," said the Rev. Ray Hammond, of the Ten Point Coalition.

Norfleet led a gang for many years, and he served a prison term. But last spring, he helped negotiate a truce that held until last week when he was gunned down in front of his grandmother's apartment after returning from a meeting at his church.

"Now, I'm not saying that overnight Jahmol became an angel because there was a transition, and he was still working his way through those issues. But he worked through those issues and had many successes in his commitment to change his life," said the Rev. Miniard Culpepper, of Pleasant Hills Baptist Church.

The group is organizing the Jahmol Norfleet Hero's Fund to raise money for an anti-violence video he was hoping to produce and to promote leadership skills among those in his neighborhood.

"It is not a Roxbury problem. It is not a Mattapan problem. It is not a Dorchester problem. This is a human problem," said the Rev. Nancy Taylor, of the Old South Church.

One of the last men to speak with Norfleet before he was killed was a vocational counselor who said he saw a major change in Norfleet in the final weeks of his life. His interest in finding a better job and bringing others into the program was heightened.

"It's always frustrating when there hasn't been an arrest made. But I believe that the Boston police are doing the work that they were hired to do. I have faith in them," counselor Deric Quest said.

Culpepper said that he is quietly fasting until there is an arrest.

Norfleet's funeral will be held on Wednesday.