The Ottawa REDBLACKS are often thought of for their performance on the football field, but the reality is that they’re so much more than that.
Since 2021, the REDBLACKS — through the OSEG Foundation — have been running a mentorship program, which pairs players with young people from priority communities to help guide them through life, whether they have goals of becoming a football player themselves, or hope one day be a chef. Once a month, they’ll meet as a group, all the while setting up individual meetings whenever possible.
Though some of the mentors have physically left Ottawa during the offseason, the program trucks along virtually in addition to the in-person monthly meetings. Those meetings become less individual, with mentees rotating around, speaking to everyone at one point or another.
“It keeps the mentees connected within the program as they have already been exposed and interacted with other mentors,” said OSEG Foundation Community Impact & Engagement Senior Manager Kim McLean. “It helps build that connection to other mentorship opportunities as well. So there has always been that emphasis on group mentorship in the more recent seasons.”
The group gathered most recently in early February to prepare the mentees, who are in their early teenage years, for the workforce. The REDBLACKS shared their first job experiences with the group, including Kalil Pimpleton, who talked about his time working at Taco Bell and as a dock builder.
The mentees were shown demonstrations of both good and bad job interviews, and had their turn interviewing for pretend roles, with the players asking the questions.
“After this meeting, I feel way more prepared for job interviews,” said one mentee. “I feel way more confident in putting myself out there, and more of an open mind to the job fair out there.”
Over the years, McLean has seen big transformations for the youth involved in the program, specifically referencing Kene Onyeka’s mentee.
“He is a lot more confident, and he goes home from his meetings telling his family how inspired he is,” McLean said. “It has really increased his confidence and self-worth. He’s a lot more social, and a lot more chatty in our programming, which has been amazing. That has been a really cool transformation.”
From the perspective of the players, a program like this can be a way to help guide the next generation and steer them down the right path. For some, they see themselves in the youth they work with, and for others, it’s a sense of duty to leave the community in which they work in a better spot than they found it.
“It empowers them a lot,” said REDBLACKS linebacker James Peter. “It gives them hope that anything in life is attainable, as long as they stay true to themselves. They can attain whatever goals they have.”
These youth find confidence, leadership, and new goals through opportunities they might not otherwise have. Sometimes, meetings are a workout. They could also put together a study plan or spend the afternoon go-karting — essentially anything.
“The mentorship program gives us a lot of opportunities to go out there and meet people, including our mentors,” said another mentee. “It gives us opportunities that we wouldn’t have had otherwise. So I feel like this mentorship program exposes us to the world.”
All of the success stories have proven one thing: with the REDBLACKS participation, they are helping pave a path for a better future.
“The mentorship program does a great job of building leaders, for sure,” said REDBLACKS defensive back Justin Howell. “It teaches them certain skills, things that can carry over into their communities, to their peers. Teaching them to be self-sufficient and be confident in themselves, and helping them to develop into great leaders.”
