TOLEDO, Ohio — A Toledo man has been inspiring young men and women by teaching good skills and motivating future leaders to stay on the right track.
Calvin Oliver is a former convicted felon who spent close to 20 years behind bars for breaking and entering.
Now he's using his dark past and showing today's young men that there's a better way to approach things in life by encouraging them to take a much smoother path than he did.
"I'm not ashamed where I've been but if that's what it took to make a man out of me being the man that I am today, I say, 'Well done,' Oliver said. "But these days I'm just trying to do the right thing."
One of those young men Oliver encourages and mentors is Ezekiel McSwine.
"The mentors are actually helping these people because these kids really need someone to look up to in their lives and some kids don't have actual parents and stuff like that," McSwine said. "Yes, they have guardians but they need somebody to look up to in this world."
"Being able to see good figures out in the community. It boosts the positivity up in the boys, it's less fighting you see in the neighborhood," student Stephanie Williams said. "It's more coming together."
Oliver said this is just his way of giving back to the youth and he wouldn't have it any other way.
"I like to be part of this and I don't like wanting to stop," Oliver said. "Because the more my voice can touch people and the kids, things might be better. Behind all this shooting and killing and stuff out here, we need more people like myself."
Oliver said it's time to tighten up not lighten up when it comes to keeping these kids set on a positive path forward in life.
"We need to step up to the plate and we can do better," Oliver said. "Come on Toledo, let's do the right thing. You know we can do this here."