OCEANSIDE —— Members of the TenPoint Coalition Program want to take their faith-based, police, community and business effort to mentor children at risk of gang involvement to the community in February.

"The main thing is to get out and start getting mentors into the (community) and schools," said Ron Mazone, a member of the TenPoint planning group and the faith coordinator for the Health and Human Services Agency, north coastal region.

The Oceanside TenPoint group, which formed this year, is headed by Oceanside Pastor Gerald Johnson of the City of Refuge Church and aims to offer positive alternatives to troubled youth and to gang members looking to improve their lives. The pastor, police officials and then-Mayor Terry Johnson announced the group's efforts in September after a series of gang-related shootings in Oceanside.

The group is still in its first phase which involves planning, laying the foundation for the program, recruitment and training, but they are on their way to starting a pilot program in Oceanside. Once the program is established, Pastor Johnson will present their work to other cities in the county that want to bring the TenPoint program to their communities, he said.

"It's very important that Oceanside's fiber is strong so that it can serve as a model for them to replicate," Johnson said.

The Oceanside program is based on the foundation of Boston's successful TenPoint program but is being tailored to fit the needs of Oceanside, he said. The Boston program has become a national model.

In Oceanside, a TenPoint team, made up of members with extensive experience in mentoring, is in the process of completing the training manual which will be provided to mentors, said Mazone. They are also trying to recruit 10 mentors from the community to start out the program, he said.

"We're reaching out to the community, hitting a cross-section of people who have a vested interest because gang activity affects everyone in the community," said Mazone.

Once the 10 are selected, they are required to commit to a year of service and must undertake a full-day of training as well as follow-up training days through the year. The training day is set for late January, Mazone said.

Then they plan to go into the schools such as Ivey Ranch Elementary, Martin Luther King Jr. Middle School and El Camino High School to get some referrals for mentoring, Johnson said.

After they get the first group of mentors trained, they hope to get another 60 mentors trained in the months afterward, Mazone said.

After the mentorships are in place, the group plans to start gearing up for street ministering, Johnson said.

From the standpoint of planning and laying the foundation, Johnson said they have surpassed some of their goals. For example, they wanted to form an alliance with 12 churches, but they have 22 churches on board so far, he said.

The group is also laying the foundation for future internships and job training. A third member of the TenPoint work group, Daniel Scott, who is also the executive director of Faith Based Community Development Corporation, said many of society's problems have economic roots.

"When you look at what motivates gangs, often it's selling drugs," Scott said.

Through the program, he said their hope and vision is that the youth will participate in building affordable housing as one venture.

"It's about choices in life. You have options. The only time you don't is when you're dead. When you're lying in the street with a bullet hole," Mazone said.

The TenPoint group will soon go before the Oceanside City Council to request funds to match the $50,000 offered by former Mayor Johnson in November. The money would match funds donated by County Supervisor Bill Horn.

Mazone added that TenPoint is confident that when it starts showing some positive results, more local, state and federal funding will be put forward to sustain the program.

"Our children are at a state of mind where they really need help and not one agency can help. We need all of them together to work to find the key to reach the youth," Pastor Johnson said. "Money is not the object, it's the gathering of resources."

Johnson said the group wants to thank the community for the support that has been given so far, but that there is still a need for more support and partnerships. People are asked to contact Johnson at (760) 721-7007 to help.

Contact staff writer Yvette Urrea at (760) 901-4076 or yurrea@nctimes.com.