Northlands Parkway Collegiate’s Youth in Philanthropy (YIP) program took their mission seriously this school year, volunteering in numerous capacities and raising over a thousand dollars for the YIP endowment fund overseen by the Winkler Community Foundation (WCF).
As a result, with stretching funds from WCF, the teens were able to grant out $3,842 to four local non-profits June 3.
The year was a whirlwind of activities, shared YIP members, Joy Plett and Bristol Hildebrand, both Gr. 11 students.
“We did a lot of different things at the beginning of the year,” said Hildebrand. “We had a dinner theatre that was going on here and so we took advantage of that to host a silent auction. The community was very giving to us. We got a lot prizes from great places, and a lot of people donated to that.”
“And then after that we did a couple sales with Valley Bakery,” added Plett. “We bought some doughnuts from them and sold them, and the school really loved that.”
YIP members also got involved in this spring’s Kurling for Kids bonspiel, which raised funds for the Boundary Trails Health Centre’s child and youth rehabilitation services.
The mix of fundraising activities with volunteerism is what drew the two to the club when it was started up again last school year.
“We started off kind of small because we didn’t quite know what we were doing, but this year we were getting better and better. We doubled how much money we raised,” said Plett.
Hildebrand noted it’s a great way for youth to give back.
“Last year there weren’t a lot of kids, but once we were there we were excited to just do something for the community and get involved,” she said, adding that it’s also given them a chance to learn more about the work being done by non-profits in the area and how they can help. “You don’t have to be part of Youth in Philanthropy to give back to the community—you can always volunteer. I know the hospital loves volunteers, and there are lots of different organizations that you can be a part of.”
Given all the great causes in the area, narrowing this year’s grant recipients down to four was a tough decision for the group.
“We choose these ones because the things that they were funding for seemed like very good causes,” said Plett.
Genesis House received $1,500 for its children’s program, the Winkler Family Resource Centre (WFRC) received $1,092 for its Ready, Set, Go preschool program, Adult and Teen Challenge of Central Canada received $1,000 for intake fees, and Katie Cares received $250 for new pillow cases at Katie’s Cottage.
Representatives from each organization were on hand to receive their grants and reflect on what these youth-driven donations mean to them.
“Together with YIP, we decided it would be very cool—and cool doesn’t really cover it—if this grant, this donation could be used to cover an intake fee for a community member,” shared Derek Neufeld, regional ministry manager with Adult and Teen Challenge. “This is going to be a gift for them to say don’t let money be the reason for you not to get the help that you need.”
The ministry has a healthy base of adult donors, but to see kids stepping up to support them in this way is amazing, Neufeld said.
“To see students and teenagers come alive and learn about being generous, doing something that’s beyond themselves and helping a person who’s at the end of their rope, it just warms the heart.”
It’s a sentiment shared by Sophie Gerbrandt, director of development at Genesis House.
“The financial donation obviously is huge, but for us the opportunity to let a group of high school students know about what we’re doing at the shelter, that in itself is a gift,” she said. “It’s amazing to see the next generation be willing to talk about these issues, and it gives me a lot of hope.”
The donation was a full circle moment for Ruth Reimer of Katie Cares. The agency’s namesake and founder, Reimer’s daughter Katie, was a member of her school’s YIP program before her death.
“So it comes around, it circles around,” Reimer observed. “It’s so great to see a group of this size working together on something like this. They’re learning about giving back … it really is quite something to see.”
Executive director Monica Dueck loves the fact it’s kids helping kids when it comes the WFRC donation. The money they received will support a program that helps pre-schoolers and their parents prepare for starting Kindergarten.
“It helps them get ready when they start their school journey, and these kids here are almost done their school journey,” Dueck noted. “It’s a pretty neat connection.
“It’s so great to see so many young people involved in this and just becoming aware of what resources are in the community and ways they can get involved. They’ve been so generous with both their time and their grants, and we’re very excited to see this new generation excited about that.”
“They are a wonderful group of philanthropists,” said YIP staff leader Zoé Fraser, noting the club had just over 20 members this year, and they were all keen to get to work. “So were able to have it all be completely student led.”
Her hope is they leave the program armed with the knowledge that anyone of any age can make a difference.
“That helping others is the most important thing in life.”
