Now You Care

By Lianna Shen
November 21, 2008

There is a lot of good stuff going on in Regent Park. The Pathways to Education program has greatly reduced the dropout rate. The music school is giving kids affordable music lessons. There’s a film festival. Heck, Trump’s helping fund an $11-million aquatic center.

But there are still problems in the area. Some people in Regent Park are living the low life. Sometimes it’s enough to make you do something.

This next story is not my own. It belongs to a guy named Andy, a volunteer coordinator at the Salvation Army Christian Group. This story made it’s way to me via another volunteer, a good friend of mine.

His name is Justin, and one day, he told me he was volunteering at the 614 Church in Regent Park. I always knew he was a nice guy, but let’s face it – scenesters over 25 who volunteer are pretty rare. On top of that, he was already tutoring at Pathways. He doesn’t live that close to the area, so I asked him, what’s with the good-doing?

He didn’t take offense to my question at all. He didn’t scoff at my insensitivity. He told me that he felt he had to do something after a guy named Andy told him about a little girl who lives in Regent Park.

This little girl is a part of the kids group that Andy coordinates. Every Monday evening, volunteers pick up the kids directly from their houses in Regent Park, on foot. At the end of the evening, they drop them off.

One evening, when Andy went to pick up this particular little girl, the little girl’s father greeted him at the door. The house smelled like crack and he was clearly high.

The little girl was dressed and eager to go, and Andy took her to the church with him where she played with the other kids and ate dinner. At the end of the night, Andy had to drop her off at home again. To her cracked out father.

After hearing this story Justin says he immediately wanted to volunteer. For some reason he felt compelled to do something, and ever since then he’s been doing it.

But let’s not leave this on a low note.

Most of the kids I’ve met in Regent Park seem to have a lot going for them. The ones in high school want to go to University. The little ones are outgoing and healthily curious. And they have adults around, like Andy and Justin, who care a lot about them and are willing to stick around.

So while every once in awhile one hears the crack-dad story, and stereotypical images of a ghetto Regent Park come to mind, perhaps there is a plus.

It makes people care.