Adopt-A-School: Despite doctor’s order to slow down, 78-year-old on a roller-coaster ride of helping out
David McCann does have a paying job — he’s the general manager of Creekhouse Industries on Granville Island.
But how he finds time to do it amid the numerous and often giddy roller-coaster rides he takes to raise money for The Vancouver Sun’s Adopt-A-School program, is anybody’s guess.
Most 78-year-olds are slowing down. McCann seems to be revving up.
“I’m under doctor’s orders to take it easy,” McCann had said earlier this spring after he was admitted to hospital because his heart was acting up.
So let’s take a look at his summer and what slowing down looked like.
One of the first things he decided to do was to distribute the thousands of art prints he had stored at Granville Island and other locations to various charities and institutions so they could sell them and raise money.
He had planned to use them for that purpose himself but, well, he was under doctor’s orders to take it easy, although in the end he did hang on to a few hundred prints.
“More than 100 community organizations and schools took them,” said McCann, including the Vancouver and Surrey school districts and some as far away as Newfoundland.
“About 70 organizations came to the hub we had in the old Emily Carr building (on Granville Island) and picked stuff up. We’ve shipped pallet loads away to Smithers and places up north and to New Brunswick — even Mexico.
“Schools can use them as fundraisers with the money being used to feed hungry children. That’s what I’ve asked them to do,” he said.
Selling art prints in schools over a weekend is something he had done for AAS to the benefit of a couple of Vancouver secondary schools. This spring, before his doctor told him to cut back, he raised $14,000 for AAS at Vancouver’s John Oliver Secondary.
But old habits die hard and in July he and some of his friends spent four days on their feet selling prints out of the old carving shed on Granville Island (once used by artist Bill Reid) to tourists and visitors passing by.
It was by donation only and people could take whatever prints they wanted.
Some — upon inquiring why the prints were being given away — made generous donations including an American family who seemed surprised that Canadian children going to school hungry weren’t being fed by government like children in their own country.
It was tiring shilling prints to tourists for six hours each day, admitted McCann.
But then he took the show over to the nearby Kids Only Market for another couple of days.
And when he finally sat down, he sent $11,260 to AAS which has received almost $200,000 from his personal donations and various endeavours over the years.
While dispatching prints far and wide, he was also working on plans to hold another fundraising dinner for AAS, similar to one held last year.
That dinner was followed up by selling prints during five Christmas concerts given by the Vancouver Men’s Chorus.
“I’ve got three restaurants who are interested for this year. If I could sell enough tickets, I’d hold three dinners,” said McCann, for whom thinking small seems a waste of time.
Which brings us to the 100 or so fridges, freezers, stoves, microwaves and other assorted kitchen equipment taking up space in a Delta warehouse this summer which, like the prints, he wanted to somehow use for the benefit of hungry children.
“It’s all brand new, worth over $100,000 retail but the packing boxes are damaged so stores won’t take them.”
It all came to him the same way as the art prints.
“Some companies want to get rid of stock, some stuff gets left in warehouses and abandoned and they’ll offer it to me.”
Is that because it’s known he will use whatever he receives for charitable causes?
“Probably.”
Most of the equipment was directed to the Vancouver and Surrey school districts to be used in breakfast and lunch programs for students in need of food — programs which are supported each year by funds from AAS.
“That’s what I asked them to do,” said McCann. “I hope they will.”
Since 2011, AAS has sent more than $14 million to B.C. schools to buy food and to care for impoverished children.
“All that equipment — it’s just a donation in kind really — and if it’s used to benefit hungry kids that’s all that matters,” said McCann. “Money, prints, freezers — it’s all the same.
“But to tell you the truth, this year’s been a bit of a blur.”
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