By RON FANFAIR
Ruddin Greaves and Michele Gonzales were fatally shot outside Calypso Hut 3 nightclub in July 1997. Greaves, who was 22 years old, came to Canada from Trinidad & Tobago in March that year.
Life has never been the same for Greaves’ mother, Marilyn Ortega, and her family.
“I see someone looking like Ruddin and hear a voice that sounds like him and those things bring back memories,” Ortega said before a Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment-organized Community Walk in Scarborough on June 7 which is National Day Against Gun Violence across Canada. “I am standing here today to say the feeling of losing one to gun violence is real. Enough is enough. We need love, peace and unity.”
Justin Sheppard was shot and killed while on a footpath near Bloor St. and Rosedale Valley Rd. in June 2001.
“Grief is not an event,” said his mother Audette Shephard. “It follows you all through life. The months of June and February, which is his birth month, are very traumatic for me. My grief is love that has no place to go. You never get over it.”
Sheppard’s stepbrother, retired National Basketball Association player Jamaal Magloire who is a Toronto Raptors ambassador, played an integral role in organizing the event that ended with a Peace Walk from the Birkdale Community Centre to Thomson Memorial Park.
“There are other ways to resolve conflict other than pulling out a pistol and shooting someone,” he said. “I get mad too a lot of times at a lot of people and with a lot of different things. But I have learned different ways of resolving conflict other than killing people.”
In September 2018, Jago Anderson, 19, was gunned down in Scarborough.
“Pieces are being put back together by the grace of God, but it is very, very tough,” said his mother, Lorraine Anderson.
Toronto Police Chief Myron Demkiw attended the event, comforting the mothers and other family members who were the victims of gun violence.
“I want to acknowledge the resilience and strength that so many of you have demonstrated, coming here today to confront gun violence and ensure that your story of loss, grief and sadness is brought to light where there is darkness,” he told them. “Thank you for having the courage and strength to be here with us. I also want to acknowledge that we have here today a reflection of what it is going to take to have real solutions.
“We have the police who go into harm’s way every day. Our members are members of this community. Our members carry pain and grief with them when they respond to these horrible events. We will stand shoulder to shoulder with our communities, ensuring a sense of safety and security while we confront gun violence.”
Demkiw said he was heartened by the large turnout of young people, among them 10-year-old Ethan Williams who did the land acknowledgement.
“You are truly our future,” he said. “We have a shared responsibility to provide for you the opportunity to succeed. You have the power of your voice. Getting your voice heard is the catalyst for long-term change for all of us.
“Please continue to participate in your communities and always study, of course.”
A day earlier on June 6, Demkiw joined faith leaders and city politicians in a walk in Etobicoke in the wake of violent shootings in that community.
On June 2, officers responding to a mass shooting found five victims suffering from gunshot wounds. Two of them succumbed to their injuries.
A day earlier, a 20-year-old man suffered multiple gunshot wounds near Martingrove and Albion Rds. while a 14-year-old boy exiting an apartment building near Albion and Richgrove Rds., was randomly shot.
“What we are seeing here today is the power of unity that comes through faith and believing in something bigger than one’s self no matter your faith,” Demkiw said. “Today, the community has come together in prayer in order to help us heal and find a path forward through these challenging times. I hear from the community grief and pain, but I also hear strength and resilience.”
Community resident Desiree (last name withheld) said the Prayer Walk is essential.
“In the last few days, there has been a lot of tension,” she said. “Everyone is here today, but what happens in the long run. We need more presence and solutions.”
Reverend Andrew King, who with Reverend Carmen Lewis co-lead the Etobicoke Strategy that has seen 23 Division neighbourhood officers and Black faith leaders walking through Etobicoke, meeting community members and engaging them in prayer every month for the last 24 years, said faith leaders will always be there for the community.
“When we hurt, we all hurt,” he said. “When we are in pain, we all are in pain. We are here today to let the families know that we care.”
