COSTA MESA : Children’s Program Runs on Respect

Oscar Santoyo, 30, has been around at-risk children long enough to know how to handle them.

And the director of Save Our Youth has a theory: If you treat them with respect and don’t look down on them or condescend in any way, then you’re pretty much set.

“I’m not going to dis(respect) a kid if he fools around,” said Santoyo, a 1982 graduate of Estancia High School who was born in Costa Mesa. “I cut them a little slack, but I know when to draw the line.”

And, so far, the children and the SOY director have gotten along greatly since a recreation center opened for at-risk youngsters in May, 1993. There children can play pool instead of getting into trouble on the streets.

Or they can watch television, lift weights or do a little sparring in the boxing ring. If they get into trouble, they can call Santoyo on his beeper.

But for the most part things run smoothly, and SOY, located at Hamilton Street and Meyer Place, “has become a place to kick back and relax,” Santoyo said.

Nearly everything in the center was donated by various organizations. “It’s a place for the kids to come when they’ve had enough at home,” said Santoyo, a part-time radio production director and announcer.

He made his living in radio until he discovered he liked working with children who come from broken homes--a bug he picked up while working for a Milwaukee radio station and finding time on his hands.

Though he came from a stable family, Santoyo said he has found a certain amount of solace in being there for the youngsters.

“I grew up on the west side,” said Santoyo, referring to the predominantly Latino neighborhood in Costa Mesa. “Back then, things weren’t as bad and there wasn’t as much violence as there is today.”