Field Dispatch: The Mornelle Court All Stars
When gun violence fractured Scarborough's Mornelle Court community in 2008, Angela Bracket started an organization to keep kids safe by walking them to school daily.
Location: Mornelle Court
SCARBOROUGH, ON: All Stars Community Outreach SafeWalk Program in Mornelle Court on March 12, 2026
Captured while on assignment for Northpine Foundation
On March 12, 2026, in the heart of East Scarborough, Toronto Mayor Olivia Chow & Deputy Mayor Paul Ainslie walked with primary school students and community leaders as part of the All Stars Community Outreach SafeWalk Program in Mornelle Court.
The morning SafeWalk program begins at 8:00 AM, when adult volunteers pick up students from their apartment building and walk them together to their school. At 3:00 PM, the team takes the second afternoon walk to bring the kids home.
The SafeWalk program was born out of tragedy after a string of gun violence impacted the Mornelle Court community in 2008, taking the life of a 17-year-old boy.
When people were afraid to walk in the community, and student attendance at school had plummeted, Angela Brackett stepped up to address a community need.
She founded the Mornelle All-Stars Residents Coalition, which launched a supervised “safewalk” intervention to make the neighbourhood safe for families again by walking kids to the local public school.
She has continued to keep the program running for 17 years, supported by a community of residents and volunteers who have worked to improve the overall health, welfare, and safety of Mornelle Court.
Northpine Foundation has invested in seeing All-Stars Community Outreach Grow to support more families in Scarborough, with the next community being Galloway.
Field dispatches are short-form snapshots from assignments, published between longer features to keep you close to the work as it happens.
Image Above: Deputy Mayor Paul Ainslie waits at Mornelle Court in Scarborough, with All Stars Community Outreach team Angela Brackett & Shanti Chand, community volunteers & Northpine Foundation’s Impact director, Neel Joshi, before the SafeWalk program begins.
Image Above: Officers from Toronto Police 43 Division’s Community Engagement unit support the program, helping bridge the gap between local law enforcement and a community that has long felt disconnected.
Image Above: Students from the nearby primary school walk back to Mornelle Court with the All Stars Community Outreach's SafeWalk program as part of the organization’s after-school programming, which has grown to include homework help, a book club and camps over March break and the summer.
Readers Note:
When we think about creating change, it’s the people on the ground with lived experience who know how to address the challenges in their own communities.
The moment that stayed with me on this day was seeing Mayor Olivia Chow and Deputy Mayor Paul Ainslie walk with Angela Brackett and the All Stars community volunteers.
There was no other media present, just public officials recognizing, acknowledging and listening to how the behind-the-scenes work that’s been happening for 17 years.
I grew up in Scarborough, knowing that the communities here have always taken care of themselves because it feels like no one else will.
That’s why it’s important for us to keep documenting and sharing these stories from the perspective of the people leading the change from the ground up.
For communities like Mornelle Court that have long faced systemic challenges, people like Angela Brackett and the All Stars Community Outreach volunteer team are the heroes leading the everyday change.
The world needs to know about it.
Sid Naidu
If you have a story tip on community solutions, climate stories or cultural shifts worth paying attention to, you can reach me at sid@changemade.co
About All Stars Community Outreach: All Stars Community Outreach is a Scarborough-based registered charity founded by Angela Brackett in Mornelle Court, which has been running community safety, education, and outreach programs for children, youth, families, and seniors since 2008.
For more information: allstarscommunityoutreach.ca
About Northpine Foundation: Northpine invests in opportunities to break the cycle of poverty and help underinvested communities thrive. All Stars Community Outreach is one of their investees.
For more information: northpinefoundation.ca
Learn More
The Stars of Mornelle Court via Toronto Community Housing (2024)
Mornelle Court residents took ‘our community back’ from gun violence. Now grades are up, crime is down and police services are taking note via the Toronto Star (2020)
Safe Walk program helps Mornelle kids get to school via CBC (2016)
Ambitious teen remembered as family, friends grieve via The Globe & Mail (2008)