Cities involved
Toronto
The Regent Park neighbourhood of Toronto was selected as the second H.E.R.O.S. franchise operation in 2005.
The area is surrounded by aging concrete towers that provide low–income housing. Many recent immigrant families from Sudan, Ethiopia and the Dominican Republic live here.
Most of the parents in this neighbourhood work 24/7 at multiple, low-paying jobs. They struggle to keep their heads above water and support their growing families.
When their kids leave home in the morning, they walk past drug dealers, pimps, prostitutes and gang members before they even reach school.
H.E.R.O.S. is a non–profit organization that uses hockey to build self–esteem and teach life skills to at–risk youth. The organization aims to help kids growing up in the highest–risk neighbourhoods of Canada's major cities.
H.E.R.O.S.' goal is to help these families by offering a positive lifestyle option and support for their children to choose a different path.
