Jason Colero – Director, Education Programs
Toronto – During 2013 training camp, rookie receiver Natey Adjei approached me and recalled how lucky he felt to have heard former all-star linebacker Michael Fletcher and I speak to him and his classmates at Hazel McCallion Public School in Mississauga. It was back in 2003 when we were just starting the Huddle Up Bullying Prevention Program, presented by Tim Hortons.
Fast-forward to December of 2014. Natey signed up for our player/cheerleader training for this year’s program. In fact, I believe player enrollment for this year’s off-season programs (Huddle Up Bullying Prevention Program, presented by Tim Hortons, and Make The Call – A Gender-Based Violence Prevention Project, presented by Tim Hortons) was the biggest ever. Huddle Up allows players and cheerleaders share their personal experiences with students in elementary schools and high schools, and teaches them how to effectively communicate positive messages around bullying prevention.
Make the Call specifically focuses on preventing men’s violence against women and is specific to high school audiences. At the training session, players and cheerleaders are provided background on the societal issue of bullying and gender-based violence, and how they affect G.T.A. schools and students.
Almost two months after the training, Adjei was scheduled for his first assembly as a Toronto Argonauts football player. Fittingly it was at Brian W. Fleming P.S. in Mississauga – not far away from where he attended school over 10 years ago. As he told his story to the student body, it was evident that Fletcher inspired him. He gave the kids hope that they too could achieve their dreams. After all, as someone who’d grown up in the roughest part of Compton, California, he was living proof.
Natey also shared a story specific to the issue of bullying. He explained that a year after he heard us speak, when he was in grade 8, he noticed a friend being bullied by some of Natey’s other friends. He talked to the person who was bullied, who explained that this has been going on for quite a while.Natey encouraged his friend to tell someone who could help – he remembered referring to the messages of the Huddle Up program he’d learned just a year before from Fletcher. Knowing that his friend was uncomfortable telling a teacher, Natey remembered that going to someone you trust would also be effective. He convinced his friend to speak to their coach who was able to help.
The story was one that I felt some satisfaction from because it demonstrated that someone not only absorbed and used the messages of the bullying prevention, but years later remembered how the message had helped them.By the time we left Brian W. Fleming we had made a whole bunch of new Argos fans, along with many more #11 Natey Adjei fans.
Who knows? 10 years from now we may well have one of those kids as a player at Argonauts training camp.
Make your passion your life and no one can take that away.
Jason
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2015 Schedule Released! |
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