PRESS COVERAGE
Boosting a neighbourhood, one kid at a time: Fresh Air Fund
It’s gotten a bad rap, but for those who know Jane-Finch as well as Betty Bailey, it’s a community where good things happen every day.
And she’s helping the neighbourhood reach its full potential one child at a time, at Seeds of Hope — a summer camp for kids 6 to 12.
For Bailey, assistant director at the Youth Unlimited program, camp is where magic happens. It’s also in her DNA; Bailey’s love of outdoor adventures began when she was a girl in Jamaica. She loved camp so much she became a teacher so she could keep summers free for camp. All these years later, Bailey is still a very happy camper, organizing day and overnight camp programs at Seeds of Hope.
“I just love camping and working with young people,” she said. “If you really want to make a difference for the future, working with young people is the way to go. Kids have so much potential, and camp brings out the best in them. It’s where I became a leader.”
Jane-Finch neighbourhood
Benjamin Osei sits alone on a plastic chair in a small community-centre basement. He's wearing a loose, black and white African-style patterned top and clutching a textbook. A group of a dozen black teenagers walks in, announcing their arrival with a symphony of laughter and traded insults.
"Your head is shaped like a football," one says.
"How can you talk? You wear the same pants every day," comes the reply.
"Shut up. I told you, these are my school pants."
Aged between 13 and 17, they live in the large apartment towers of the Palisades complex on San Romanoway. The teens come to these sessions two evenings a week after school. It's a program designed to steer the young people of the Jane and Finch neighbourhood away from gangs and toward academic success.
Mr. Osei, 47, waits for them to quiet down. Everybody sits. At the boys' request, tonight they'll be talking about sex.
They disagree on when a young man should become sexually active. Some say at 13, others say only when he's prepared to accept the consequences, such as having a child.
PROFILE: Seeds of Hope Youth Unlimited
The Seeds of Hope summer day camp offers one of the few Christian day camps for children in Toronto, established in 2005 by Benjamin Osei (Youth Worker). The goal of the camp is to provide a safe, fun, and enriching environment which allow kids and youth to spend the summer learning. growing, and gaining new experiences that will help them become better individuals. It is supported by the Jane/Finch Church Coalition in partnership with Youth Unlimited/Toronto Youth for Christ. The 7-week camp runs from Monday, July 6th until Friday, August 21st from 8:30am to 4pm, Monday to Friday for children and youth age 6-15. 14-15 year old campers will get the chance to participate in the Leaders in Training program during camp.