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| The
Holiday Lunch Program |
| In
1997, Care & Share provided a Christmas lunch for all the students
and staff at St. Michael School. It was soon decided that every
child in Saskatoon’s community schools, regardless of their
religious or ethnic background, should be entitled to a holiday
feast at least once a year. An undertaking of this size takes hundreds
of hours of organization and work. We partner with most of Saskatoon’s
major hotels and many restaurants, suppliers, and FirstBus Canada
to make this initiative work. With a great deal of help from our
friends and mentor companies, we are able to serve over 6,000 hot
turkey meals in 19 schools. As with all of our programs, there is
no charge to the schools. |
| The
Dignity Fund |
| The
Dignity Fund was established in 1998 to try to maintain and enhance
the self-esteem of kids in community schools. Care & Share provides
access to a Wal-Mart charge account to all community school coordinators
to help them immediately attend to the necessities of daily living
for their students in need. If a child does not have proper clothes,
such as a coat for winter or running shoes for summer, the school
community coordinator is immediately empowered by Care & Share
to go to Wal-Mart and buy whatever is needed so the child can rejoin
the other students without being demeaned or embarrassed. Similarly,
if a child does not have the necessary items to maintain physical
hygiene, any needed items will be provided by the Care & Share
Dignity Fund “no questions asked”. The Dignity Fund
is unique to Care & Share and is one of our cornerstones. |
| Curling
Program |
| Care & Share developed a co-ed learn-to-curl program in conjunction with Curl Saskatoon, KidSport and Hub City Curling Club in 2001. Every January to March, sixty-four kids are on the ice each week for ten learn-to-curl sessions. We provide ice time, equipment, qualified coach/instructors, transportation to and from the rink and a hearty meal after each of the ten learning sessions. At the end of the curling program there is a bonspiel and banquet for all curlers. Each curler receives a medal and team photo. Through this program we hope the kids will continue curling in high school and in later years. |
Soccer
Program – Little KICS (ages 8-10) |
| In 2000 there was no indoor soccer league for community school children. With funding from City of Saskatoon, KidSport and The Muttart Foundation, Care & Share rents floor time at the Saskatoon Kinsmen/Henk Ruys Soccer Centre. We provide transportation to and from the soccer center as well as all required uniforms and equipment. We also provide qualified coach/instructors to teach the kids how to play soccer. The program, which includes both girls and boys, aged 8-10, includes a team from each of the 17 schools. |
Learn
to Bowl Program |
| Care & Share and the Saskatoon Sports Council www.saskatoonsportscouncil.ca partnered in 2003 to run a bowling program at Fairhaven Bowl for students in Grades 3, 4 and 5. With assistance in funding from KidSport and City of Saskatoon, over 600 school children are able to learn the sport of bowling. Classes from each of the 17 community schools take part in 4 weeks of instruction and play. Certified coach instructors are provided by Fairhaven Bowl to ensure that this is an actual learning experience. Transportation is provided by Hertz Northern Bus to and from the facilities. Pizza is provided on the last day of the schedule. |
| School
Supplies Program |
| Many children attending community schools do not arrive at school with the required tools to assist in learning. Care & Share steps in to provide these school supplies so all the kids have an equal opportunity for success. The supplies are purchased in bulk, i.e. pencils, crayons, rulers, notebooks, etc. These supplies are given to the community school coordinators in September and January. The emergency supplies are to be given to students who don’t have the necessary supplies to take to their classroom. |
| Lice
Shampoo Program |
| Lice can be a problem in any school, but it becomes worse when not treated. A program was set up with Shoppers, Westgate Mall to fill requests from each of the community schools for lice shampoo. Products such as Nix and R&C Shampoo were provided to families who could not afford to buy it. Care & Share pays the bill for all families not covered by other plans. |
| Choraliers
Program |
| New to Care & Share in 2004 was a choir program which was piloted in four schools for children in Grades 1 and 2. The program is run by Lorna Roblin of the Saskatoon Choraliers. The students practice singing at noon, once a week, in preparation for public performances in their schools. The response has been fabulous and plans are underway to expand the program. |
Lions
Club Eye Glasses Program |
| Care & Share partnered with the Lions Club and Point Optical in 2004 to provide glasses to children in the inner-city and community schools who could not afford to buy them. The Lions Club has been providing glasses to hundreds of children for over 14 years. This new partnership allows Care & Share to provide financial assistance to help meet the growing demand. Point Optical dispenses two pairs of glasses; one for school and one for home. If they lose their “home glasses”, they still have a pair of glasses that remain at school to ensure best possible learning. |
Babysitter
Program |
| In
2005, at the request of the community school coordinators, Care &
Share hired St. John Ambulance to provide 150 kids with the opportunity
to become certified through the Babysitter Program. The number of
students being certified in this course has been increasing each year
as it is such an outstandingly successful program. To accommodate
the larger number of students, we have also hired the Red Cross, First
Aid for Life trainers for the students. The Muttart Foundation –
youth granting for youth – has provided financial assistance
for the 2005/2006 and 2006/2007 school years. In many instances, these 12-year-old boys and girls are often placed in the position of caregiver for their family. This program prepares the young people to deal with emergency situations; it helps develop their work ethic allowing them to earn some money and enhances their self esteem. Certified instructors and training booklets are provided by St. John Ambulance and/or Red Cross. RBC Foundation made the initial donation to help us pilot this project. |
Bike
Safety Program |
| In 2005, the Saskatoon Law Enforcement Guardians partnered with Care & Share in creating a “safety program” for biking. Thirty-two new bikes, helmets, safety vests, and repair kits were purchased along with a trailer for storage and transport. Maaco Collision Repair & Auto Painting agreed to transport the trailer of bikes. Schools book the bikes for a day or two and classes of young students are taught by certified instructors how to properly operate a bike and how to safely and legally operate a bike on the street. Helmets are mandatory and proper fit is discussed and demonstrated. Older classrooms are allowed to book the bikes for longer day trips. This allows all students to participate, especially those that do not own bikes. |
| Other
Programs |
|
| Care & Share is also looking into other areas where we can make a difference. |