FOR Kal Dosanjh, CEO of KidsPlay Foundation, who knew one of the two teenagers who were shot and killed last Sunday in a gang-related targeted hit in Surrey, it was very personal.
The longtime Vancouver Police officer, whose organization helps kids stay way from gangs and drugs with a variety of programs, expressed his feelings in a post on his Instagram account.
He wrote: “Three years ago, a mother called me asking for help for her son.
“She was a single parent working multiple jobs, doing everything she could to keep him on the right path. She knew the influences around him were dangerous, and she didn’t want to lose her child to the streets.
“I took him under my wing, and over time he became part of our KidsPlay family. He started showing up regularly, helping with programs, playing soccer with the younger kids, and building connections.
“I’ll always remember one summer camp when he picked up a little girl, put her on his shoulders, and ran around laughing with her. In that moment, you saw the innocence still inside him. He tutored that same little girl for a local spelling bee. She did well. The first person she hugged after the competition was him. The kids adored him.
“He was standing at a crossroads, searching for identity, acceptance, and a place to belong. We tried to give him that. But the streets were offering him something too — false promises wrapped in money, status, and belonging.
“In the end, he made a choice. And now he’s gone. He was one of the two killed in the double homicide on Mother’s Day in Surrey.
“This one hurts deeply.
“Not because we didn’t try. We did. Our entire team treated him like family and gave him everything we could. But sometimes love, mentorship, and support are still fighting against forces far bigger than one organization or one person.
“Behind every headline is someone’s child. Someone who laughed, who carried pain, who still had good in them. Someone whose mother once stayed awake at night praying they would make it home safe.
“Today, my heart is with every mother grieving a child lost too soon.
“We have to keep fighting for our youth before the streets claim them first. My deepest condolences to both families. Rest in Peace.”
