He doesn’t have to be ‘tough’ anymore

Alex “Doublecheese” King is starting his business career early.

The gregarious 12-year-old is posting fliers around the homeless transitional family complex where he lives in Westwood with his mother and six siblings. He plans to corner the market on odd jobs this summer, though perhaps nothing involving punctuation.

“Hey Hey Hey!!!” reads the flier. “There’s a new person in town the name is Alex and I’ll do anything all you have to do is name it and BOOM!! It’s done just like that.”

With any luck, Alex’s dream of owning restaurants and grocery stores will get a running start in the next few months.

“People will know my name from Alex’s Store, the King’s Restaurant, stuff like that,” says Alex.

He’s also planning to be a pro football player (he plays quarterback for his school team at Ralph Waldo Emerson Middle School), and a minister and a lawyer.

But that’s in the distant future. In the meantime, Alex has a lot to check off his list. On top of his handyman work and cooking for the family this summer, he plans to study every day, wants to camp overnight on the beach and is excited to return to the Salvation Army’s Camp Gilmore.

Last year, Alex got a chance to try rock climbing -- which he liked despite his fear of heights -- and wrestling at a week of sports camp.

Alex’s mom, Sarah Moore, says he came back bursting with camp stories.

“He was like, ‘Mom, it was so fun!’ They sang songs and they made friends,” says Moore.

That week away was a needed respite from months of upheaval that Alex and his family had undergone.

They were evicted when their landlord sold their South Los Angeles rental home in 2004, so Alex’s parents moved into a friend’s garage, which they converted into a livable place for their large family. Then Alex’s dad left his mom after 15 years together.

“It broke my heart,” says Moore. “I thought we’d be married for the rest of our lives.”

Moore took her children -- one of whom is autistic and another mildly retarded -- to the Midnight Mission shelter in Inglewood for a year. Then, 10 months ago, she found the family’s current apartment through the Salvation Army.

In Westwood, their lives have more stability and Moore is happy that the kids are in good schools. Now, when they return to South L.A., the kids feel unsafe, says Moore.

“We go back there to shop, and they’ll say, ‘Lock the doors, Mama,’ ” says Moore.

“You gotta be tough out there,” says Alex about South L.A. “We’re not used to it anymore. We’re scared of it.”

About 10,000 children like Alex will go to camp this summer, thanks to $1.6 million raised last year.

The annual fundraising campaign is part of the Los Angeles Times Family Fund of the McCormick Tribune Foundation, which this year will match the first $1.1 million in contributions at 50 cents on the dollar.

Donations are tax-deductible. For more information, call (213) 237-5771. To make donations by credit card, go to latimes.com/summercamp.

To send checks, use the attached coupon. Do not send cash.

Unless requested otherwise, gifts of $50 or more will be acknowledged in The Times.