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They work behind the scenes, often alone, sometimes without pay, to prevent violence and rebuild social ties for Montreal’s most vulnerable youth. On Tuesday, November 11, the Coalition Pozé brought them together for the first edition of the Interventum Gala, a unique recognition evening attended by dozens of youth workers from across the city.
An Evening for Those Who Help Youth Navigate Challenges
Saint-Léonard, a stormy evening. Snow piles up on the sidewalks, but inside the Carlton Signature, human warmth takes over. Nearly 90 people gathered to celebrate a profession rarely in the spotlight: youth work.
By 6 p.m., the hall filled with hugs, laughter, and souvenir photos. Among the guests were inspiring figures such as Guedwig Bernier, former leader of Projet Montréal, pop singer and youth mental health ambassador Annabel Oreste, and prominent professionals like Beverley Jacques, co-organizer of the event and founder of DOD Basketball in Saint-Léonard.
“This is the first time we specifically recognize frontline workers who support the most vulnerable youth, those many fear or avoid,” said Pierreson Vaval, executive director of the Pozé Coalition. These workers, day after day, “accept precarious situations to go where no one else will,” he emphasized.
“It’s true that we don’t do this work to win awards, we do it because it’s a vocation,” reminded Mohamed Mimoun, director of the Forum Jeunesse de Saint-Michel, recognized in the Vocation category. But “it’s important that these people finally taste the recognition they deserve.”
Celebrating Unsung Heroes
Twenty awards were given that evening to about thirty selected individuals—men and women working in the streets, gyms, and youth centers of Montréal-Nord, Rivière-des-Prairies, Saint-Michel, Côte-des-Neiges, and Petite-Bourgogne.
The atmosphere was like a big family gathering: familiar faces, reunions, laughter mixed with fatigue and pride.
“This is the first time we’re all seeing each other and celebrating ourselves,” said Karim Coppry, chair of the Pozé Coalition and director of Philo-Boxe, a program combining philosophy and boxing for youth. “It’s important to recognize both those who have worked for 30 years and those just starting.”
The organizers of Interventum aimed to bring together youth workers of all generations: pioneers who carried community work through the 1990s and 2000s, and the new wave bringing their own codes and language. “We need workers whom youth can relate to, who understand their reality, who come from the same neighborhoods,” Coppry added.
Honoring a Vocation of Commitment
For many awardees, this recognition was unprecedented. Taking the stage to receive his Pioneer award, Harry Delva said it was the first time he had been honored for his youth work. The surprise was palpable among the audience, many of whom knew this Saint-Michel figure, active in street work for over 30 years.
A community radio host and former school prevention officer, Delva is part of a generation of workers remembered by youth who are now adults.
“I walk the streets around schools,” he said. “I talk to youth, listen, guide them.” His secret? “Put yourself in their shoes. Understand what they’re experiencing. Often, the solution is already within them; you just need to give them confidence.”
Some of the youth he worked with have themselves become youth workers, managers, or entrepreneurs—his greatest reward.
“A Vocation Is a Calling”
Among the winners, Jordana Larochelle received the Vocation award. A psychosocial worker for over 12 years, she works with youth placed by child protection services and coaches basketball for teens in Anjou and Pointe-aux-Trembles.
“For me, vocation is a calling,” she said. “It’s not about money. It’s something that lives inside you. We give because we love it, because it gives us value.” She recounted seeing youth who just needed a space and an adult who believed in them.
Her biggest challenge? “Making others understand how much youth need environments and mentors to grow into young adults.” Finding a basketball gym often becomes a struggle. “People seem to forget that they were young once. They forget that at that age, you need an environment, a mentor, an adult who stays.”
For Jordanna Larochelle, recognition also comes through representation: “It’s wonderful that many men were honored tonight. Many families lack male figures. These men become role models.”
From the Street to the Network
Founded in 2021 following a series of shootings in Montréal-Nord, the Pozé Coalition began as a civic movement. Its members, frontline workers, sought to counter violence by giving youth spaces for expression, sport, and dialogue.
Four years later, Pozé is a central part of Montreal’s community fabric.
“Our approach is keeping youth resources within their environment,” said Pierreson Vaval. “Youth need meaningful adults around them, actors who can work where most cannot.”
Art as a Tool for Transmission and Healing
The gala also highlighted art as a tool for transmission and healing. Singer-performer Annabel Oreste took the stage to sing and express gratitude for the profession.
“The first person to make me realize I wasn’t okay was my school worker,” she told La Converse. “Thanks to her, I understood that my environment was toxic and that there was another world outside.”
Her voice trembled as she added, “She saved my life. She was the only one to see my wound.” Today, Annabel Oreste shares her story with youth. “I want them to know that asking for help is brave, and accepting it is twice as brave.”
An Essential Profession Under Pressure
Speeches repeatedly highlighted the severe lack of resources amid rising needs.
“There aren’t enough youth workers in Montreal,” said Karim Coppry, “especially not enough that youth can identify with.”
Beyond celebrations, Pozé has long warned about underfunded frontline organizations and staff overload. “Consultations with workers show the same reality: youth increasingly struggle to find help in their immediate environment,” said Vaval. This shortage reduces prevention and heightens tensions in some neighborhoods. He called for more youth workers in Montreal, Laval, and Longueuil.
The Coalition also aims to better equip frontline workers and pool resources, allowing them to share experiences, develop de-escalation strategies, and ease tensions between youth groups.
A Breath of Hope
Despite challenges, the executive director left the gala with renewed conviction, pride in bringing everyone together, and a sense of having met an important need.
For Pozé, the first Interventum edition suggests it won’t be the last. “We started somewhere, and we started strong,” said Vaval, whose engagement was reignited by the evening. Some youth stayed until the end, captivated by the testimonies. “They felt something that touched them; maybe some will become youth workers themselves.”
The evening ended with a standing ovation. On stage, winners embraced, smiling and moved. The trophies were simple, but the symbolism immense: recognition from the field, from peers.
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