If anyone happened to stop by Bow Valley High School’s (BVHS) library on Dec. 14, they would have stumbled upon a slew of students digging through enough donated foods, household goods and toiletries to stretch the entire length of the room.
The donations were part of the school’s Helping Hampers campaign, which saw the students and staff of the school collecting enough goodies to support three local families for three months. The project was initiated by the students in the school’s leadership program.
The school partnered with Geomeer, an Edmonton-based, non-profit organization that aims to support local families in need, for the campaign. Three families in Cochrane have been chosen for the program — two of the families have been selected from Glenbow Elementary, the other from Mitford Middle School.
“Our hope is that these three months will help the families break the cycle and get back on their feet,” said Dorothy Karlson, a teacher at BVHS.
In 2011, the school collected more than 1,400 kilograms of donations.
“The support has been overwhelming,” said Karlson, one of the advisors overseeing the campaign. “People’s generosity makes me well-up a little. It’s amazing what the students and staff can do when put to the challenge.
The donations were boxed and wrapped before being delivered to the families on Dec. 17.
Any excess donations will be given to the Cochrane Activettes Food Bank.
