Storying Youth Work
As we celebrate #YouthREXat10, we’re reflecting on the past decade of youth work across Ontario. This space showcases the rich and nuanced nature of youth engagement through shared anecdotes and collective wisdom.
Celebrating the Impact of Youth Work
From narratives, REX Blog articles, research findings, and direct quotes, these contributions highlight the moments that have shaped youth workers and the lasting impact of their work on young people and their communities.
FACTSHEET
This Is Youth Work: Voices from the Frontlines of Ontario’s Youth Sector
Youth workers are a critical factor in the success of a youth program, but what is youth work in Ontario really like?
The YouthREX team shared findings from seven focus groups with 58 frontline youth workers in five Ontario cities.
BLOG POST
“Thank you, but I’ve got it from here.” The Anti-Hero’s Intervention
Gary Newman, a Toronto youth worker, shows how a calm intervention on a crowded bus reflects his ability to defuse conflict through empathy, not authority — an approach shaped by his own experiences with marginalization and instability. His early struggles forged a belief that power should uplift, not dominate, grounding his commitment to supporting youth with compassion and consistency.
What has the YouthREX Team learned from young people?
Kenneth Ajila
Research Assistant
A moment I’ll never forget is when a young person transferred into my care at 18, and I began supporting him as his Primary Case Worker. When he first arrived, he relied mainly on gestures, so I respected that while gradually reintroducing PECs. Over time, he grew more confident, and the plan is to introduce more advanced means of communication as the next step.
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Community outings became a turning point. On his first bus ride, he froze when it was time to exit. I paused, realized he needed more preparation, and from then on explained how many stops were left and let him choose how to leave.
Later, I worked with his family and the school board to ensure he could continue in school, as Ontario allows students with special needs to remain until 21. This moment still lives with me because it showed me how small adjustments can create big changes.
Caitlin Arizala
Communications & Digital Engagement Associate
I’ll never forget it! It was the summer before the COVID-19 pandemic, and I had just started as a Community Outreach Coordinator with Flaunt-It Movement. Back then, I hadn’t yet realized the impact this work would have on the trajectory of my life and my connection to Jane-Finch and Rexdale; instead, I worried about whether the team would like me and if I could meaningfully contribute.
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The Executive Director (who has since become one of my dearest friends) hosted an elaborate, gorgeous picnic at a park in Jane-Finch to welcome the new team. I was surrounded by other young women and non-binary folks who embraced me with warmth. It was one of the first times I experienced the convergence of my identities; my girlhood, my advocacy for community, and the shared joy and resilience of being held by a team of young people who carried these identities too.
Our night ended with the heaviest rainfall I’ve ever experienced, but in true Flaunt-It fashion, going through it together cemented the approach we would take when going through experiences as racialized, Black, and gender-diverse young people labelled “at-risk”: with joy and with each other. I laughed harder that day than I had in a long time, and I still laugh when I remember it, almost five years later.
I also always think fondly of one of my first Flaunt-It photoshoots. It was makeshift: an Amazon backdrop, a few living room chairs, and a dream! Yet it turned out to be my favourite photoshoot ever. I loved how it captured the beauty, inherent talent, and vibrancy of Jane-Finch and how, no matter how few or many resources we have, we always, always make it work.
Since beginning my youth work in 2020, I’ve learned that being a young person from my community while also serving and advocating for it is incredibly difficult. I’m constantly navigating life myself while also applying for funding, being a resource for my community and others, and so much more. Still, moments like this remind me why I do this work: they ground me in what I know and love, the resilience, creativity, and brilliance of my community. 💞
Maria Piñeros
Design & Brand Manager
I’ve had the privilege of working with YouthREX for the past four years, and during this time, I’ve learned so much from young people. One of the most important lessons they’ve taught me is that one of our greatest superpowers is the courage to speak up.
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A moment that deeply resonated with me was during the YouthREX Teach-in, Resisting Burnout and Vicarious Trauma: Collective Care and Solidarity. Together with Vikki Reynolds, a consultant, facilitator, and community worker, we explored how solidarity and justice-doing must be central to collective care, particularly in youth work.
Shahaddah Jack, a spoken word poet, performer, human rights activist, and young person herself, was invited to perform her piece, “It’s Time to Wake Up.” She delivered a performance that was more than just poetry…it was a call to consciousness.
One line in particular stayed with me:
“Shattering the glass of our window of feigned ignorance, we lie still… while those who are tired of suffering turn their pain into action…”
Her words were a powerful reminder that healing and resistance are not opposites…they coexist. And young people like Shahaddah are showing us what that looks like in real time: how grief can become fuel, and how in “moments of hopelessness, our voices remain our greatest superpower”.
Through her poem, and through my ongoing work with YouthREX, I’ve come to understand especially from young people, that vulnerability IS strength. That storytelling is a form of activism. That choosing to stay awake — to confront discomfort, to speak up, to hope, and to disrupt the status quo — is a radical act of resistance and collective care.
And above all, I’ve learned that we must continue to build spaces where young people feel safe to speak, where their voices are not only heard but amplified…and where our role is not just to support them, but to stand with them.
To commemorate #YouthREXat10, we’re hosting a CONVERSATION SERIES on the multidimensional theme: The Youth. The Work. The System. This theme has grounded and informed YouthREX since we launched in 2015 and recognizes that youth wellbeing is interconnected to what is happening with youth, within youth work, as well as within larger systems.
To kick off the CONVERSATION SERIES, we’re excited to host Dr. Nicole Ineese-Nash, Executive Director of Finding Our Power Together and Assistant Professor at Toronto Metropolitan University.