The fifth annual Stand Up For challenge saw boarders paddle the 18-kilometre length of Kalamalka Lake to raise money. The event took place September 3rd and surpassed its $24,000 goal even before participants hit the water.
When all was said and done, they had raised $31,110 raised for Kalamalka Starfish Pack. The funds will provide backpacks full of food each weekend to 50 children for the entire school year.
After starting with just three students in 2020, the Similkameen Starfish Pack program has grown to support 16, and so has the need for financial support for the program.
The Starfish Pack program provides students at Cawston Elementary School and Similkameen Elementary Secondary School with food to take home over the weekends.
“Our community has been extremely generous with funding with donations. And we wanted to make sure that that money wasn’t just sitting in the bank, and that it was helping families,” Van Raes said. “There’s a huge need. Now that we’re in endemic mode, we have inflation issues. People are literally choosing whether to pay their rent or put food on their tables.”
“So we want to make sure that we can cover as many families as possible with just a little bit of something for them.”
The Peardonville Community Association Society has donated $500,000 from the sale of their hall to the Starfish Pack Program of the Archway Food Bank.
“Our Peardonville Community Hall Committee choose the Starfish Program as it represents most closely the mandate of the original Peardonville Society objectives,” said June Ross, a member of the Peardonville Committee.
“The main fundraisers and programs were for children. Stemming from the 2nd World War, the neighbourhood women became part of the Women’s Institute whose motto was “no child should ever go hungry” and the Starfish program fits that motto perfectly.”
“Words cannot adequately express how grateful we are for this donation,” said Rod Santiago, the Executive Director of Archway Community Services. “This will do so much to enhance the food the children receive each week, the number of children we can help and live on as ongoing endowment.”
“Compared to providing for approximately 60 students at a small number of schools prior to the pandemic, the Starfish program now provides food packs to approximately 170 students at more schools.”
In Mission, every weekend, teams from the Starfish Backpack Program distribute backpacks containing two breakfasts, two lunches, two dinners and two snacks to hungry kids and their families. The program is receiving $2,000 monthly for a minimum of four months from United Way.
What’s happening to the Abbotsford Starfish Pack Location while schools are closed? Although we have been faced with food shortages, proximity limits and so many unknown factors, thanks to our generous community we have a plan to continue feeding hungry students and families.
Children in Vernon won’t have to worry about going hungry thanks to Kal Rotary’s Starfish Pack Program continuing during Covid-19.
(1 minute read)
By Meghan Kellington & Rebecca Thuro
The Starfish Pack Program has been buzzing lately, preparing for the new school year’s deliveries to start. It’s crazy to think that less than 10 years ago, Starfish was delivering 6 backpacks to one school in Abbotsford, and now over 1400 children across the province of British Columbia (and Whatcom County, WA) are receiving Starfish backpacks each weekend thanks to hundreds of volunteers and donors.