Winnipeg's Bear Clan encourages young cubs to get involved with community through mock patrol

Dozens of junior high school students in Winnipeg stuck around after class Wednesday to patrol the neighbourhood around their school, and learn what it takes to be part of the Bear Clan citizen patrol group.

General Wolfe School, in the city's Daniel McIntyre neighbourhood, participated in the first mock youth patrol — a collaboration between the Winnipeg School Division, the Winnipeg Police Service and the Bear Clan that aims to encourage community involvement by young people.

"We want to extend our role within the school, because we're all about harm reduction," said Mario Cueto, who is a director of the Bear Clan and also a teacher at General Wolfe, where he chairs the school's Indigenous education committee.

"If we're getting the kids to focus on being part of Bear Clan and trying to help others, we're hoping that a lot of that empathy rubs off on them and then they consider being more active within the community."