Mary Jane Shannon Elementary is defined as a “complex school” in the Surrey school district based on its statistical landscape, community, learning outcomes, and on the assessed vulnerability of the children entering the school. Twenty-three per cent of our families are defined as low income, 30 per cent are single parent, 55 per cent have moved into or out of the neighbourhood in the last five years and 67 per cent of our students speak a language other than English in the home.
Several of our vulnerable learners face a myriad of challenges including lack of nutritious food, no transportation or consistent home base, inability to cover additional expenses such as school supplies, proper clothing, and/or extra-curricular activities.
With an emergency fund, our school team will be able to act quickly to provide our students with essential items, supports and opportunities they need to remain on a path of future success. With your support, we can empower our vulnerable and at-risk learners who are struggling to grow and learn as individuals.
(AAS21-206)
In the fall of 2011, the school year had barely begun at Admiral Seymour elementary when teacher Carrie Gelson, frustrated after a difficult day at work, wrote an impassioned open letter to Vancouver residents asking whether anyone cared that her inner-city students were coming to school cold, hungry and with holes in their shoes. And then something wonderful happened. On the day that The Vancouver Sun published her letter, Gelson arrived at the East Vancouver school to discover that, “People had already dropped off thousands of dollars in cash . . . they literally drove into work that morning bringing donations.”
Clearly, Gelson had revealed a pressing need in our communities and, in keeping with our paper’s long-vested philanthropic commitments, we not only told her story from a journalistic perspective, but asked our readers — through our Vancouver Sun Children’s Fund charity — to help her students and others. And come through our generous readers did.
A decade later, The Vancouver Sun Children’s Fund’s Adopt-a-School project has raised more than $8 million in donations both large and small, from individuals and from companies alike, and not just money but clothing, school equipment and field trips.
Since the beginning, our commitment has been to ensure that every single penny donated goes directly to the children, and we have continued to honour that promise. When you donate to The Vancouver Sun Children's Fund, 100 per cent of your donation goes to help children and youth. None of your donation goes to administration costs.
