Many of the 150 students attending the Fraserview Learning Centre in Mission have more than enough problems without adding hunger or their lack of appropriate clothing and other basic necessities.
As an alternative school, Fraserview Learning Centre’s students are among the most at-risk and vulnerable in the community.
As an alternative school, Fraserview’s students are among the most at-risk and vulnerable in the community.
Such schools have a disproportionate number of students in government care, living in poverty or on the street, involved in drugs, alcohol, gangs, the sex trade, or struggling with their mental health.
Despite all this, the alternative education system offers an opportunity to experience success, says Fraserview’s youth care worker, Kirsten Castonguay.
“Our students often have multiple obstacles to overcome before they are able to sit down and learn. One of the most common we encounter is hunger,” she explained. “Which luckily, is often one of the easiest to overcome, given we get the funding to do so.
“Although we are a small school, many of our students are among the most at-risk in the city and often arrive without breakfast or lunch. Unfortunately, the need exceeds what we can manage alone,” she said.
For this reason, the school is asking The Vancouver Sun Children’s Fund and its Adopt-A-School campaign for $15,000 to provide students with food, clothing and other necessities.
Last year, she said, Adopt-A-School “significantly helped us support our students in their basic needs of food, clothing and hygiene products.”
“They have come to rely on us as a place where they can find these items. The funding helped us run a breakfast program and launch our lunch program,” she said.
Adopt-A-School also helped the school restore shower and laundry facilities so students could take care of their hygiene and wash their clothes.
It provided funds to stock a thrift store in the school where students in need could find socks, underwear and T-shirts.
And if none of the donated clothes in the thrift store would do, Castonguay was able to buy students new coats or shoes.
Now there’s a need to provide grocery cards to ensure students are eating on weekends or at times during the month when they and their families are without food or money.
“We can’t offer that support without funding from this (Adopt-A-School) program,” said Castonguay.
Two students, neither of whom we are identifying, said the help they received from school was significant.
“I usually get my clothes from here,” said an 18-year-old female student.
“Clothes have gotten so expensive. Kirsten was kind enough to let me go through some clothing for winter so I will be warm for sure,” she said.
She makes use of the shower and laundry facilities at the school.
“I know if I ever need anything they are always able to help me.”
Both students live with single parents.
A 16-year-old male student receives food from the school to take home, a bus pass, clothes, shoes and other necessities.
“The school takes care of me when I don’t have food,” he said. “I’m able to shower here and I get clothes when I need them after being soaked from rain and shoes when I’ve had holes in my shoes,” he said.
“I’ve had to take food from school home when I was in a rough patch. It’s made a huge difference.”
The children’s fund has received 164 requests from B.C. schools totalling $1.5 million this year so they can feed and clothe impoverished children.
Since 2011, the Adopt-A-School campaign has sent more than $15 million to hundreds of schools to provide food, clothes and other items necessary for the welfare of students who were going without.
The Vancouver Sun Children’s Fund is a registered charity. No administration costs are deducted from Adopt-A-School donations. All donations will be directed to schools.
How to donate
1. ONLINE: Donate online with a credit card at www.vansunkidsfund.ca
2. PHONE: To pay by credit card, call 604-813-8673.
By Gerry Bellett (gbellett@gmail.com)
