Community remembers teen

 15-year-old from near Jane and Finch remembered as lighthearted and animated.Police are calling the death of a 15-year-old boy in the Jane and Finch area suspicious after they were called to a lowrise apartment Monday.

Paramedics rush to save the life of a 15-year-old boy shot in a 3rd floor apartment at 40 Turf Grassway, near Jane and Finch, late Monday evening. The teen died in hospital. 

At opposite ends of the city, in dark, grungy apartment complexes, two 15-year-old boys have been gunned down in less than a month.

On Monday at 10:30 p.m., Toronto police rushed to a Jane St. and Finch Ave. lowrise at 40 Turf Grassway where one teen was discovered suffering from an “obvious gunshot wound” to the torso, police and EMS confirmed Tuesday.

He later died in hospital.

The boy has been identified online, by community members and friends as St. Aubyn Rodney, though police would not confirm his name. He was remembered as a team player with a charming sense of humour — now the victim of the GTA's third deadly shooting this year of a person under age 16.

It was only last month that Tyson Bailey, 15, was shot and killed.

Bailey, a high school football star, was shot in the stairwell of a Regent Park highrise. Five days later, Kesean Williams, 9, was shot in his Brampton home while watching TV. No arrests have been made in either case.

As of Tuesday evening, police were calling Rodney's death suspicious as the homicide unit continued to lead the investigation.

Three people were taken into custody Monday after fleeing the scene and were being held for questioning Tuesday, said Const. Victor Kwong. No charges had been laid.

Those who knew Rodney remembered him as a selfless, innocent kid.

“He's a very animated character,” said Jordan McFarlane, a co-ordinator for the Youth Association for Academics, Athletics and Character Education basketball team Rodney belonged to for three years. “He's always the life of the party and (had) a ton of jokes to tell.”

In 2007, Rodney, then a Grade 5 student, joined the inaugural team that seeks to have youth from the Jane and Finch area play together wearing purple jerseys instead of gang colours.

McFarlane said Rodney's mother often came to the games his first year.

“He always felt like he wanted to be a part of something special,” McFarlane said. “I think he was more so on the team just for that experience than actually playing basketball.”

McFarlane, who also grew up in the Jane and Finch community, said he lost touch with Rodney over the last few years after he left the team following Grade 7.

“Somewhere along the line he may have lost that feel,” McFarlane said. “But I know he loved to be coming on team trips with us and just enjoying everyone's company.”

In Grade 6, on a team trip for a tournament, Rodney was benched for not keeping up with his academics, McFarlane remembered.

“We have to see that you're trying,” McFarlane said of the program rules. “For that particular semester he didn't put his best effort forward.”But that didn't break Rodney's spirit.

“As we kept on playing games, we kept on winning, he was the biggest fan. He was the biggest cheerleader,” McFarlane said. “The average kid would be upset because they didn't get to take part, but he was just glad to be there.”

With his teammates, Rodney was always the comic relief. “If we're all in a mood or let's say we lost a game, St. Aubyn would come out of nowhere with a joke,” McFarlane said. “He relieved the tension . . . He's that kind of kid.”

Sharron Williams, community director at the Jane and Finch Boys & Girls Club on Grandravine Dr., said Rodney had been actively attending the club, less than a kilometre from where he was found shot. Dozens of community members, including many teens, gathered at the club Tuesday night to remember the boy they lovingly called “Tubby.”

Crammed into the tiny blue brick building on Grandravine Dr., the emotional crowd stood in a circle as one community member spoke.

“Live in the now,” said the man, who did not give his name. “Tomorrow is promised to nobody.” He asked the crowd, on the count of three, to say “We love you, Tubby.”

Media were kept out of the vigil at the boy's mother's request, said a Boys and Girls Club volunteer who declined to speak further. Those entering the building also stayed silent, except for one young man who said, “He was a great man.”

Nearby, Oakdale Community Centre hung a banner in the hallway that read, “Rest in Peace St. Aubyn.” Mourners scrawled messages there Tuesday. “I will never forget you,” one wrote.

Mohammad Awal, a third-floor resident, said he didn't hear any disturbance after returning to his residence before 10 p.m. Monday.

Police have already canvassed neighbours on the floor, leaving notes for those they missed to call the station. Awal said the building can be noisy, but he has never seen a serious incident like Monday's before. “Most of the time people are here shouting,” he said, motioning to the hallway from his doorway.

First-floor resident Dorolee Murry said she didn't hear about the shooting until she checked the news, but remembered the teen from the building.

“He is a quiet kid, but he says ‘Hi,' to me on the street, in the hallways, at the basketball court,” Murry said. “In the summertime he's always at the basketball court, out there with his friends.”

Meanwhile on Twitter, notes of disbelief continued to circle amongst friends. “St. Aubyn u were a bright star. I don't want to believe its you, that ur gone. Rest in Love. It was an honour to have you as a student,” one woman using the handle @suntherealsun tweeted.

In Ottawa on Tuesday, Olivia Chow, MP for Trinity-Spadina, called for action following incident in the House of Commons.

“To prevent youth violence, we must do more,” she said. “We can give hope and create more opportunities for youth.”

She called for the government to make the Canada Summer Jobs program year-round, the Youth Gang Program a permanent fixture and for improvements to markings on imported firearms to help police better track illegal guns.

Toronto Community Housing also issued a statement Tuesday acknowledging the shooting and their continued cooperation with police.

“We are deeply saddened by last night's shooting,” the statement read. “Our thoughts and prayers are with the family of the victim and the residents of the Firgrove Crescent community.”

With files from Laura Kane, Alexandra Bosanac, Erica Rae Chong, Russell Piffer and Kim Magi