When Martin entered the CATTS BladeRunners program he was homeless and had been living on the streets for approximately two years. His way of being was totally street entrenched including using soup kitchens for food, Salvation Army for clothing and various shelters for sleeping. Fortunately Martin immediately established a sense of belonging to the CATTS BladeRunners program and would be waiting for the project staff outside the door at 6:30 a.m. each morning. He made the coffee and staff provided him with breakfast. During training he was shy but attentive. However, it became very apparent the physical aspect of working on a construction site was going to be a challenge. We needed to put a plan in place for Martin that allowed him to take care of his basic needs but most important was food and shelter. With this in mind a temporary agreement was negotiated with the Backpackers Inn. Martin began a work experience placement at the Esquimalt Bingo Hall, working as a janitor and assisting with general maintenance. Martin was then able to get a good night sleep and his employer fed him a meal at the beginning and end of each shift. This afforded Martin the time to build up his strength and address some health issues. He now feels stable and fit enough to work on a construction site and has commenced employment with a roofing company. In addition, he has now saved enough money to move into shared accommodation.

Prior to joining BladeRunners, Niki was an Aboriginal youth who grew up in foster care and already had an abundance of adult
responsibility. She was a single mother of two young children who had unstable housing and was living on Income Assistance. She
was also challenged with alcohol and drug (A&D) use and misuse.

Niki has achieved financial security and stability that enables her to have secure housing. “Achieving financial stability has been the most empowering and my confidence is through the roof,” said Niki. Her learned patience helps her make it through each day
and she attributes her success to her commitment to herself and her children.

Marvin is from Chemainus First Nation.  He was a very dedicated and humorous participant.  He is determined to become a carpenter. 

To date, his employer is very pleased with his work ethic and has promised Marvin full-time employment for the next few years.

“I’m grateful for being accepted into the BladeRunners program…I’ve got all these great certificates from health and safety training.  Now I’m working in the construction field, something I’ve always dreamed of doing.”

Desmond is a father of four children and believes that BladeRunners is a wonderful program.  He has learned interpersonal and trade skills and has received a number of certificates.

Desmond felt very accepted by the coordinators of the program, and is currently enjoying being employed full-time in the construction field.

“I like working because I know where I go every day and that the work is there.  I became one of the first aid attendants on the job site because I had the training.”

Before Sarah started the BladeRunners program, she was a single mother who was only just getting by.  She wanted to work but did not have the skills to get a decent job.  So, when she was accepted into the program, she decided that she was going to make it work.

Upon completion of her training, which included life skills, such as communications and building self-esteem, and certified courses including Level 1 First Aid and WHMIS, Sarah was hired full-time by a construction company.

“The BladeRunners program is wonderful and has done great things for me.  I have made many friends both at Nanaimo Youth Services Association and at work.  I have gained self-esteem and I am proud that I have become part of my community.”

Before joining the BladeRunners program, Peter did not know about work safety or about his rights as an employee.

Peter found the program to be very informative and the coordinators were courteous and highly supportive.  He received work gear and was placed on a worksite quickly.

Peter’s first job was as a labourer, and he was eventually hired to do a subtrade in drywalling.  After a lot of sacrifice and hard work, he is now an apprentice carpenter.

“Blaze your own trail, but remember, if you stumble, there will always be a BladeRunner to help you on your way.”

Gordon had been trying to get into BladeRunners since he was 17. He wanted help since he was getting into trouble from using drugs and alcohol in Vancouver’s Downtown East Side. He wanted to “straighten my life out, get into a program and get work.”

Today Gordon has been working steadily for four years as a steel stud framer. He no longer abuses drugs and has become a role model for other youth and his community. His advice to other youth is “You have to start somewhere and BladeRunners is where you should start. Stay with it.”

Annie is a young single Aboriginal mother of three children. She was looking for a steady way to support her family so she joined the Lil’wat First Nation BladeRunners program. She learned new skills related to carpentry and masonry. She was a very reliable worker and well liked by her company, which soon promoted her to a confined space watchperson. Annie has very responsible duties including testing for air quality in confined spaces. She is very pleased to be able to earn a good living and has a promising career ahead of her as a site safety officer. She will soon be starting a level 3 first aide course , which will further increase her employability.

“The BladeRunners training was very interesting. I learned not only a lot about worksite safety but also a lot about myself,” said Annie.

Paul, a young 18-year old Aboriginal youth, came to the BladeRunners program very unsure of himself.  He had very little work experience other than hay bailing and high school shop woodwork projects.  He stated that he was lacking social skills and interview skills when looking for work.  He also had a lack of social support from family and friends.  He was very shy, always looked downward and had very low self-esteem.  Upon completion of the BladeRunners skills enhancement component, he was placed at Cornerstone Tile as a tile setter.  The employer was quite happy with him and offered him a full time placement and employment at the end of his placement.  Now Paul is very happy and excited about the opportunity.  He is now more self-asured and is full of confidence.  “I am learning a lot and am proud of myself,” said Paul at his graduation dinner. 

Upon entering the BladeRunners program, Tamara had just completed drug rehabilitation.  She completed all of her BladeRunners training components and was able to secure employment at the end of the program as a renovations worker at Retro Renovations.  She is learning all aspects of renovations and new installations.  Tamara has done remarkably well and is very proud of herself. 

Steven Smith, a 19-year old Aboriginal youth came to the BladeRunners program very unsure of himself.  Some of his challenges included short-term work experience, street involvement, a criminal record, drug and alcohol use, low- level literacy and numeracy, and no high school diploma.  Steven wanted to be able to support his 8-month old daughter and girlfriend.  He was very interested in physical work and working outside.

A BladeRunners co-ordinator worked closely with Steven to find a place that suited his needs.  Steven is now working happily as a labouer at D Chalifour Construction subcontracting with CAPE Construction.  He loves the work there and is making $15.00 an hour.  He is more motivated, sure of himself and has grown quite a bit. 

Jordie Little, a 27 year old youth came to NYSA as a newly recovered youth from a drug addiction treatment program.  He was new to Nanaimo so had a lack of  social support.  He self identified himself as having poor self-management and behaviour management abilities.  He had some experience with landscaping and a bit of construction but it was too long ago for him to remember much. 
Throughout the BladeRunners skill enhancement component, he was very quiet but was very willing to learn anything.  He was placed with Nash Construction as a construction labouer with the expectation of learning from the ground up and has been able to maintain his employment there.  Now he is very happy with himself and sees joining the BladeRunners program as the beginning of a new life.

Jeremy Martens is a male BladeRunners youth who has accomplished wonders despite being having a severe disability due to a past head injury.  He is working full time as a general labourer.  He is learning a lot and is proud of the work that he does.

Josie entered the CATTS BladeRunners program with a long history of involvement with the justice system.  He has recently re-established his relationship with his wife and small child and felt that joining BladeRunners would demonstrate to his family his commitment to a healthy lifestyle.   

Josie participated in the employability skills with ease.  To enhance the learning in the classroom he contributed stories about his past and how it negatively impacted his life.  He has successfully completed his work experience working as a carpenter’s helper and will be starting his apprenticeship in early 2008.  In addition his most recent employer will be soon offering medical benefits and will increase his rate of pay.  With a wife and young family this will be a terrific bonus.  Thanks to commitment and with the help of the BladeRunners program, Josie is off to a healthy start.

Patrick had a history of substance misuse, family breakdown and involvement with the criminal justice system.  After being accepted into the CATTS BladeRunners program, it became apparent that Patrick was having difficulty focusing and remaining still.  Through discussions with his BladeRunners co-ordinator, it was revealed that he had a learning disability and that he was not taking medication for ADD.  After further discussion and action planning, Patrick consulted with his doctor and restarted his medication.  Within a few weeks he was functioning at a much higher level. 
Patrick was placed at various large construction sites and he gained skills using power tools, basic framing, steel cutting and bending rebar.  Patrick has now steadily received wage increases and is currently earning a competitive wage with Namdor Construction.  In addition to gaining work experience, Patrick has also gained self-esteem and can often be heard talking about his work experience with pride.

Patrick Brown is a 24-year-old Penelakut First Nations youth.  Before joining the BladeRunners program, Patrick had no focus in his life.  He had no experience, certified training or knowledge about how to network.
Patrick successfully made it through the challenge of commuting to the BladeRunners training one hour each way from Kuper Island.  Patrick found the life skills component of the training very valuable.  He said, “It taught me a lot about who I am… I enjoyed knowing more about myself.”  After successfully completing the Health and Safety and Construction training, he was placed with Ladysmith Marina boathouse project.  Now, Patrick has long-term employment potential, as the construction phase is five years, and 200 boathouses are expected to be built.

Harold entered the CATTS BladeRunners program with a history of involvement with the justice system, few community supports and was in the process of re-establishing his relationship with his wife and two small children.
 He successfully completed the employability skills and completed over 300hours of work experience as a carpenters helper. In July Harold’s relationship deteriorated and he decided to relocate to Calgary.  He has since returned to Victoria and is working for a decking company.  He is learning to use air tools and is receiving excellent feedback from his supervisor.
 The family is living together again and with support and full time employment hopefully Harold will continue to move forward with ample job prospects in the decking business. 
Harold has been approved for an extension to get his work experience completed.  Harold is working towards a steady future.

Richard applied for the CATTS BladeRunners program after recently completing a treatment program.  With very little work experience and no job prospects he was unsure of what area of construction he wanted to pursue.  However, during his employability skills he discovered he had a passion for wood and decided he wanted to explore the possibility of being a carpenter’s helper.  With this in mind he was placed with an employer and was able to complete his 600hrs of work experience learning tool maintenance, power tools and basic house framing.  He will be in a position within six months to ask for a carpenter’s apprenticeship with the construction company.

Gilbert was born in Vancouver but raised by his grandparents in Alberta.

At 15 he returned to Vancouver and started couch surfing.  Soon he became street involved and was living on the streets.  Prior to joining BladeRunners in 2007, Gilbert had limited work experience but wanted a career in construction to be able to support a family.  He had tried to find success on his own in the trades but was lacking support. 

Through the guidance of BladeRunners he is now working steadily as an Iron Worker and Lead Hand.  Gilbert now mentors his brother who has a disability and spends many hours taking care of him.  He now lives with a partner and child in stable housing.  Gilbert has become a highly inspirational spokesperson for BladeRunners and has helped secure funding for the program.  Gilbert is a future leader and has a very promising future ahead of him.  His goal is to one day be able to give back by talking to the youth on his reserve about drug prevention. 

My name is Dave-Ray and I was released from prison in March 2009. The economy was very slow; trades jobs for unskilled workers were not readily available. Fortunately, for me there was the CATTS BladeRunners Program and after meeting the criteria, I was chosen out of a number of candidates. I was unsure about the chances of success for finding a job.

I had previously taken entry-level electrical training and was determined to find an apprenticeship position to gain further experience within the electrical trade. The facilitators recognized my drive and were equally determined to help me get on the path to success.

The CATTS BladeRunners program was an excellent transition into the working world. The program's three-week classroom portion was very informative with experienced tradesmen as speakers as well as hands-on demonstrations outside the classroom. We received entry-level trade tickets such as First Aid and Fall Protection. Included were team building exercises and activities designed to enhance one's work ethic.
Even with the bad economy, the staff and facilitators worked around the clock pooling their resources in order to find everyone in the Program a job. I was placed on a construction site doing concrete finishing and floor levelling. This was really beneficial because I had no real experience in trades. This job gave me a variety of skills that I can use for the future. As I was building my resume, CATTS BladeRunners never gave up on my electrical goal. They were able to get me working side-by-side with an electrician in order to get my electrical experience.

Not only did the CATTS BladeRunners Program open doors for me but they also let me decide which ones I wanted to walk through. I definitely recommend the CATTS BladeRunners Program because it doesn't just help you find a job, it helps you find out who you are in order to pursue and succeed in the right career.

Sincerely,
Dave-Ray,
JHS CATTS BladeRunners Participant 2009