Feeding youth jobs and life skills

By LINDA WHITE, SPECIAL TO THE TORONTO SUN
January 11, 2006

When Shem Mwagni arrived in Canada from Kenya nearly five years ago, he was eager to gain work experience so he could land a job. He never imagined that gaining that experience would lead him to university.

"Going to university wasn't in my plans," he says. "I was a little bit desperate because I didn't have a stepping stone to get a job ... most jobs needed experience, which I didn't have at the time."

Mwagni learned about the Focus on Food Youth Program while staying at Covenant House in downtown Toronto. Like other successful applicants, he completed an orientation with Good Food Box, a bulk- buying program that delivers fresh produce to its customers.

Through the program, Mwagni gained skills in cooking, gardening and nutrition. But office skills interested him the most. His responsibilities included payroll, receivables and fundraising at FoodShare Toronto headquarters. He eventually became a produce buyer.

Along the way, Mwagni took accounting courses at Humber College and went on to study business administration at University of New Brunswick. He later transferred to University of Guelph, where he is now in his fourth year. "I think my dreams are going to keep growing. I'd like to encourage other youth to try a program like this. I really plan to do a lot for myself," he says.

Mwagni is one of many success stories, reports Youth Project co-ordinator Zahra Parvinian. "We focus on people who are lost in society. They can't find an employer who is nice to them and don't see themselves in school for any of a number of reasons. Many of our best cases are young immigrants, many of whom have come from refugee camps and are living here in shelters."

The Focus on Food Youth Project followed a successful training program for women receiving social assistance. Food Share receives funding from Human Resources and Skills Development Canada to hire 14 youth for a six-month period.

"We train our youth in different areas: kitchen, warehouse, urban agriculture and life skills," says Parvinian, a political refugee from Iran. "The best opportunity for young people who don't know where they're going is to expose them to different things. They have the support of a social worker who will work with them on things like conflict resolution and money management. An employment counsellor is also here and will help with things like finding housing."

The program is advertised through youth shelters, youth employment centres, refugee and immigration organizations and other places where youth might be looking for help in finding a job.

"We have to turn people back," Parvinian says. "We ask them to come to an orientation packing boxes for Good Food Boxes. They have to like this for six months. Some leave by noon. We pick people for an interview and out of about 45, can hire 14. It's tough, because sometimes you want to hire all of them."

She remembers finding one teen living under the Gardiner Expressway. "He graduated from the program and became a youth leader for the next group. He became a role model. I remember seeing him on his 18th birthday and he was very emotional because his family was coming to take him out for dinner. He hadn't been connected to them for four years. Now, he was so proud of himself that he called them and reconnected himself to his family."

Some graduates of the program are working full time or part time and others have gone on to college or university. But those aren't the most important signs of success, Parvinian says. "For us, the connection with family and connection with society is the real success."

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QUICK FACTS

FoodShare Toronto launched the Focus on Food Youth Project in 1997 to lend a helping hand to youth facing barriers to employment. Young adults aged 15 through 30 learn skills in cooking, nutrition and gardening and earn a paycheque from Human Resources and Skills Development Canada.

To learn more about participating in the program, contact Daniel Hoffman at 416-363-6441, ext. 224.