BENNETT
TORONTO, Canada:
TWENTY-TWO-YEAR-OLD JAMAICAN, Junior Bennett, who came to Canada 10 years ago, received a special mention from Toronto Mayor David Miller at the Mayor's Community Safety Awards last Wednesday.
The father of two girls - four-year-old Jahnae and one-year-old Junisha - is a graduate of CHOICE, a preapprenticeship programme for at-risk youth developed by the Carpenters Union in partnership with Toronto Community Housing Corpo-ration and the YMCA.
AWARD WINNER
The programme was one of five winners presented with awards by the Mayor at Nathan Philips Square.
Speaking with The Gleaner, Bennett said he got fed up with working in factories and took his résumé to the YMCA to get help with it.
That's where he met Lily Lee who suggested the programme to him. Now he has a pension plan and is ensuring that he can provide for his daughters.
Twelve students have graduated and another 14 are currently enrolled in CHOICE (Career, Help, Opportunity, Incentive, Community, Employment). After selection by the YMCA, apprentices undergo two weeks of training at the Carpenters Local 27 training centre, followed by eight weeks of on-site training at TCHC projects in their communities.
The Carpenters Union has invested $100,000 in the project, which also receives funds from Ontario's Ministry of Training, Colleges and Universities.
"I am learning from Ucal Powell who is my role model. To see that he came from Jamaica and is now the executive secretary treasurer of the Carpenters Union, I'm trying to follow in his footsteps," said Bennett.
He said the experience of working with so many
people has opened up his communication skills. Bennett has worked on a four-bedroom house installing ceiling fans, lights, buffing floors and has completed other carpentry jobs. "My grandfather was a farmer who was always fixing something," he said, attributing his skills to his grandfather. He grew up with his grandparents.
EXPERIENCE GAINED
"This programme has given me real world experience. Since I started, I've received respect from my family, my peers and older members of my community."
Several graduates have gained full employment with the TCHC while others are involved in the broader building trades.
"This programme benefits our youth, local communities and the construction industry which is always looking for new skilled workers. So it's a win-win project all round," said Powell, who is the executive secretary treasurer of the Carpenters Union Central Ontario Regional Council.
The Carpenters community-based apprenticeship programme has successfully helped hundreds of youth gain a career in carpentry and other preapprenticeship projects.
