Fadi Toma was nine years old when the war in Iraq killed his father and made refugees out of him, his mother, two older brothers and sister.
Surrey’s Wraparound team is a gang violence prevention unit with the city’s safe schools department
It was 2008, and like thousands of other families fleeing violence, they would be offered a new life in Canada.
But new lives in a foreign country, without knowing the language or the customs or having the support of the community and friends he had grown up with, can be destabilizing for a boy without a father.
By the time he was 14, Toma — living in North Surrey — was vulnerable and in danger of being drawn into the juvenile recruitment process that organized crime gangs use to find new members.
“I was a lot of trouble in school — lot of fights,” recalled Toma. “I wouldn’t let people bully me and that caused me problems.”
He eventually attracted the attention of Surrey’s Wraparound team — the gang violence prevention unit of Surrey’s safe schools department.
The team deals with the most at-risk juveniles in Surrey, many of whom are impoverished as was Toma and his family.
Their mandate is to help these teenagers find a path away from gang association, drug trafficking or sexual exploitation.
Toma soon found himself sitting down with Jon Ross, a school district supervisor attached to the team, and his dog, Marvin, which he often brought with him.
Recalling that time, Ross said: “Fadi’s trying his best to keep the family safe, but he’s up against so much.
“He’s had a very traumatic childhood where he sees things he never forgets. He’s got a broken heart. And on top of that, there’s adolescence to deal with and living in a new country.
“When youth have problems in their lives they can’t control, a lot of them look for connections outside school, and that’s when they get invited to do things and get into conflict — go rob somebody — and even worse. There are predators out there from organized crime recruiting them for drug trafficking.”
Was he on this path?
“Yes,” admitted Toma. “Three of my friends ended up victims to this.”
Being raised by a single mother trying to take care of four children, and having no father figure in his life, “It was hard to know what direction I was going to take, and then being easily influenced by others.”
Ross was able to help Toma’s family with grocery cards and other necessities when needed, and keep him in school.
It’s the ability to help with food, clothing and necessities that reduces the temptation for impoverished youth, such as Toma, to seek their needs through crime.
And for this reason, The Vancouver Sun Children’s Fund Adopt-A-School campaign has been supporting the Wraparound program for a number of years, providing the emergency funds it needs.
This year, the program has requested $25,000 so it can provide food, clothing and other assistance to students identified as high risk.
Toma is an example of what can happen when such aid is available.
“We got food cards. They would take us out to Playland or Whistler. Show us there’s a better life than the other, which is what you think life is when you are just around bad things. You seem to forget there are good people and good things that can happen.”
To get him out of Surrey and sever his connections, the Wrap team worked with Zero Ceiling, a Whistler organization that provides jobs and accommodation for youth as troubled as Toma.
“I was a technician working on snowboards — my first job. I was there for three or four years,” said Toma.
Ross said the young man returned home in 2016 with a new perspective. Toma found work in a restaurant, but his passion was cutting hair.
A friend’s father was a barber and gave him some work experience.
Today, he is part-owner of City Fades, a barbershop on Douglas Crescent in Langley City.
His is a success story for the Wraparound program. But he’s also an asset helping them with Arabic-speaking refugee kids just as lost as he was.
He now mentors those caught up in the same dilemma that once troubled him.
“Jon brings them around. I’ve been in these kids’ shoes and I can relate. If it wasn’t for that steady hand on my shoulder that set me in the right direction … that touched my heart.
“All these kids need is a better role model in their lives. What Jon and them are doing is trying to make the world a better place. Maybe they are not able to get to all of these kids, but they still save some and that makes a huge difference. They were able to get to me.”
This year, 164 schools are requesting help from Adopt-A-School to feed, clothe, and provide necessities for impoverished children and families totaling more than $1.5 million.
The Vancouver Sun Children’s Fund administers Adopt-A-School. No administrative fees are removed from donations. Donations in their entirety will be directed to schools.
How to donate
1. ONLINE: Donate online with a credit card at www.vansunkidsfund.ca
2. PHONE: To pay by credit card, call 604-813-8673.
By Gerry Bellett (gbellett@gmail.com)
