Local Gr. 4-6 students have the chance to earn some much-needed funds for the Winkler-Morden chapter of Habitat for Humanity this winter.
Habitat for Humanity Canada has teamed up with a host of generous sponsors—including BMO, Sagen, Metrie, Stantec, BrokerLink Insurance, and Travelers—for the annual Meaning of Home contest.
Kids are invited to submit an entry between 50-300 words answering the simple question: “What does home mean to you?”
The winning answer will receive a $30,000 grant for their community’s Habitat chapter plus an iPad for themselves and a pizza party for their class.
The runner-up will receive $10,000 for their home chapter as well as an iPad and class pizza party.
On top of that, every single submission results in a $10 donation towards the entrant’s local Habitat for Humanity.
“We haven’t had anyone win locally yet—although I do have high hopes that there will be someone—but it is a great fundraiser for us,” said Christina Falk, chapter support manager for Habitat for Humanity Manitoba and a member of the Winkler-Morden chapter.
“We often make between $700 and $10,000 or more,” she shared. “It’s awesome because it’s young children that are actually making a contribution to our work, just by doing some writing.
“That money goes directly towards the next house being built,” Falk said. “So it’s giving Gr. 4-6 kids a chance to directly affect the building of the next home in Morden-Winkler, which is pretty cool.”
There are a number of school classes whose teachers have led the charge in getting entries submitted (the contest has a teacher’s portal to make it easier for educators to upload their students’ work), but there are also many families who answer the call for entries each year.
Falk is available to stop by classrooms to share with students about the affordable housing work of Habitat for Humanity and the impact it has had on six families in our area in recent years (with a seventh just announced earlier this month for a home to be built in 2026).
Since its inception in 2007, the Meaning of Home contest has raised over $3 million for Habitat projects across the country. Over 137,000 students have sent in entries.
The contest opens on Jan. 5 and runs until Feb. 20. Winners will be announced in May. More details can be found online at www.meaningofhome.ca.
