A Regina group is making a difference in helping former gang members lead a clean and safe life.
The city has one of the highest crime rates in Canada and one of the reasons why is gang crime.
Leaving gangs can be hard for those looking to get out of that lifestyle.
That’s where the Regina Gang Exit Network comes in.
The program is part of a collaborative effort to help them find a way out of gangs and get their lives back on track.
“Regina Gang Exit Network is a mentoring program where we can connect people who have exited the gang lifestyle, been out and clean and living well for a number of years and we’ll connect them with people who want to get out,” said Spurgeon Root, the director of the Regina Gang Exit Network.
The program has three navigators – former gang members who have been out for a minimum of four years and are now living a clear, sober life.
During the program, the navigators help participants while working in a woodshop and bicycle repair shop, part of the healing process for both current gang members and the navigators.
Ron Burling said he hopes being a navigator will help others not walk down the same path he once did.
“I just want to give back to the community for all the damage I did for my years being involved in that kind of life,” Burling said.
“I preach to my youth it’s all about 40 hours,” navigator Vincent Wolfe said. “Get a job. If someone had told me that when I was 14 or 16 years old, I wouldn’t have spent 18 and a half years in jail.”
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