At this time of year, we are often reminded how fortunate we are and in how many ways we are able to help those who may be less fortunate.

We have supported both the “I Read that Already” book drive and the “Stuff the Pup” clothing drive, but we are now moving onto the Third Phase, which is the “Adopt A School” campaign.

Here is some information from our Coordinator:

We started this project 9 years ago and we are excited to continue it this year. Last year we collected gifts for students from Pre-K to Grade 8 and created essential toiletry bags for students in Grade 7 and 8. We also collected mini mitts, toothbrushes and toothpaste and holiday treats for every student in the school. The students at our partner school are very grateful for our generosity. We are told that for some of the students, our gift might be their only holiday gift. This year our goal is to collect enough gifts for every student at our partner school as well as a goodie bag with some toiletries and a few holiday treats. Each class of Hawrylak students will be responsible for making the holidays special for a group of children in their age range. Starting on Wednesday December 7th, and running until Wednesday December 14th , bring an unwrapped gift (or gift in an open gift bag) to school. As a guideline, think of a gift or gift card that you would give your child or one of their friends in the $15-$20 range. Each gift we send is accompanied with a goodie bag consisting of mini mitts, toothbrush, toothpaste and holiday treats which means we need 250 of each of these items. The items we are collecting this year for the senior student’s toiletry bags are: soap or body wash, shampoo, toothpaste, toothbrush, hats, mitts or gloves and holiday treats. We can appreciate that this is a busy time of year. If you want to participate but do not have the time to purchase a gift, we accept cash donations because we would be happy to do the shopping for you. We will also be accepting cash donations to purchase items like gift bags and items for the essential toiletries bags. If everyone does a little, no one has to do a lot. All leftover gifts will be donated to the Christmas stores that a number of the community schools operate. This program allows children to bring whatever they can afford (whether it is a dollar or a dime) and shop for gifts for their families. The gifts are wrapped at the Christmas stores for the students to take home to their loved ones.

Our class is asked to provide gifts and toiletries for girls in Grades 5/6.

Our WE Act group, of which many of the girls in our class are a part, will be assisting with putting together the gifts and gift bags and possibly delivering them to the school that we are supporting.  We had a special presentation by Mr. Friesen today to learn about poverty and what it looks like in our own local community. At this time of year, especially, our generosity can make such a difference to students who do not have the same opportunities as the students at Hawrylak School.

Thank you for you support!