From Program Participant to Mentor: Cyris’ Journey at Wesley

For some, Beasley Community Center is just a building to pass while driving down Wilson Street. For others, Beasley is a sanctuary, a safe place where they can truly be themselves and thrive. For Cyris, Beasley’s meaning and purpose have gone through many seasons of change, starting as a young child and continuing today as he works as a summer student with the After School Program.

In 2010, when Cyris was nine years old, Dr. J. E. Davey Elementary School and the connected Beasley Community Center opened. Here, he attended Wesley’s after-school program and recreational drop-ins almost daily. Programs run by Wesley gave Cyris a place to spend his afternoons with his friends, particularly on the basketball court. “I loved being at Wesley. It gave me a place to be where I felt safe and comfortable,” says Cyris. “I got in trouble in school a lot; it was somewhere I could just play and not think about the stuff going on at home or at school.”

It was at Beasley that Cyris’ natural drive to help others began to flourish into a fierce dedication to serving his community in meaningful ways. “I love being in my community,” he proudly states.

Now, Cyris is 22 years old, attending the University of Ottawa to study Criminology, with a goal of becoming a police officer. With this career, he feels he can give back and make a positive difference in his community, aiming to work back in his hometown of Hamilton. When his school break rolls around, you can find him right back at Beasley working as a summer student at the same after-school program he participated in. “I love working with the kids, interacting with them, inspiring them, helping them,” he says.

When asked about what motivates him to help others and work with kids, Cyris credits the influence of the mentors he had at Beasley and his mother, who has spent her life working with young children. He had older friends who started working at Wesley, and in high school, while he was still attending the recreational drop-in programs, he decided that he would follow their lead.

“I love helping people; that’s my biggest motivation,” he says. With the kids at Beasley, “it’s a full-circle moment, I was them at one point. Now I can help provide the support I had, and it feels pretty cool.”

Despite the obstacles he overcame in getting where he is today, Cyris’ focus is on paying it forward to the kids he works with. “I’ve been through the same stuff, I’m from the same area,” he explains. His decision to work at Beasley during the summers is the perfect example of his commitment to supporting the next generation. “Helping them out, inspiring them, answering their questions – that’s what I like the most. They ask me questions about when I went to Dr. Davey School, and I’ll share my stories. It makes me feel like I’m making a difference, and that’s important to me. It feels good. I hope it makes them feel good too.”

Through his work at Beasley, Cyris hopes to help the children he mentors see that they, too, can overcome obstacles and achieve their dreams. “Just follow your dreams, do what you want to do, do what makes you happy,” he reminds them often.

Cyris’ work helping others is far from over, and he hopes the kids he works with find their own versions of success and that some will return to Wesley’s programs when they’re older to help. He’ll be there too – “I’ll always be around. I can’t see myself not being here. I’ll keep my hand in it somehow. I love it here.”