École Squamish Elementary principal shops for enough food for those who arrive at school hungry, roughly a quarter of her 400 students.
SQUAMISH — Every week, Sarah Hain, the principal at École Squamish Elementary, has the extra-curricular job of shopping for enough food for those who arrive at school hungry, roughly a quarter of her 400 students.
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“We have a big fridge and we are filling it up a few times a week. At the end of each day, it’s always empty,” Hain explained.
The amount of hunger she sees in children is the result of the economic instability affecting many families due to the rising cost of food and housing. Families on income assistance, disability assistance or working at minimum wage jobs are suffering the most.
She is asking The Vancouver Sun’s Adopt-A-School campaign for $20,000 to feed and provide winter clothes to children coming to school hungry or with clothes unsuitable for the weather.
“The funding is needed to address the urgent need for nutritious food, appropriate clothing and hygiene supplies as families often struggle to meet these fundamental needs,” she said.
Those struggles have a negative impact on students’ physical health, self-esteem and academic performance.
Hain said the students in need represent a “diverse group of resilient young individuals facing challenges” that impact their access to basic necessities.
“We have such a lovely school community here,” she said. “We have a group called Helping Hands that delivers food to us. We have soup days when our (Parent Advisory Council) makes homemade soup. They are actually doing it today.
“Any way we can find ways to feed them, we are doing it.”
But finding the money to buy clothing for some children and having sufficient food to feed them is a balancing act. Sometimes, she has to scale back on the amount of food that is available in the fridge.
“So if I get (Adopt-A-School) funding I know I can fully stock the fridge with breakfast and lunch items,” she said.
She and the school’s vice-principal, who also helps with the shopping, are always on the lookout for food bargains.
“If we can get a good deal on anything, we’ll take it,” Hain said. “Healthy food is expensive.”
The fridge contains items such as yogurt, fruit, vegetables, muffins, cheese sticks, unsweetened apple juice, granola bars, and sandwiches.
“Things we know the kids will eat. But we have seen an increase (in demand) over the last year,” she said.
As for clothes, she recently shopped for gloves and hats as there were children arriving at school without them.
“I just put them out so families could take what they need. We would like to be able to provide a coat if a child needs one. We want to ensure vulnerable students are equipped with the necessary clothing for varying weather conditions.
“We would also like to be able to send food home at the weekends or in the evening, in cases where it’s necessary. We’d love to have the opportunity to do that.”
All donations to Adopt-A-School will be sent to schools. No administration fees are deducted from donations.
How to donate
2. PHONE: To pay by credit card, call 604-813-8673.
Donations are tax deductible