Grades 4 and 5 students at Davidson School are leading the charge against homelessness and hunger this Christmas season.
Twenty-five kids from the two grades recently contributed to the Habitat for Humanity and Genworth Canada “Meaning of Home” online writing contest. With every entry received $5 was donated to over 30 Canadian Habitat affiliates by Genworth Canada.
In total 7,038 entries were submitted this year from grades four to six students with 546 of those coming from Saskatchewan placing student participation in this province fourth largest in the country. The entries raised $35,190 so far as a further $60,000 grant to a Habitat for Humanity affiliate of the winning entry’s choice along with five runner-up prizes of $5,000 each are going to be awarded in January.
“I would donate (the prize) to either the Saskatoon or Regina Habitat for Humanity shelter, so they can expand on it and take more people in,” said Grade 5 student Baylie White, 9, on what she would do if her entry was chosen as the winner.
In her entry Baylie wrote: “Home is something that everyone should have. Home is shelter, warmth and coziness. Home is a place where you can run and hide when you are scared. Home is somewhere you can have your family over for dinner. Home is somewhere you can watch your kids grow up. Home is something everyone should be able to call their own. Please help everyone have a house to call their own because home is where the heart is.”
Baylie said she had a little bit of help from her mom with the entry, but she likes writing and found it fun as well as important to contribute to the “Meaning of Home” contest.
“Seeing homeless people on the streets makes people really sad, so it’s kind of nice to try and donate to them,” she said.
Fellow Grade 5 student Logan Farrell, 10, said it is extra special for the kids to contribute to this contest because this is the Christmas season and this is a good way to give back. He said it was important to participate because it gave the kids a chance to “donate things to the homeless people.”
Habitat for Humanity “build houses,” said Logan. “If (people) need a house they do help them or they raise money for shelters.”
Logan’s entry into the contest read: “Home is (warm) and a (warm) bed. A place you can spend time with your family. Home is a place you can eat. Home is a movable place. Home is where you have Christmas and (Thanksgiving). Home is where I feel happy. That is what home is to me.”
Logan said the grades four and five kids are not the only ones at Davidson School trying to help the less fortunate this Christmas season as all the grades are participating in the Davidson InterChurch Association (DICA) Christmas Community Hamper project. For their effort, students and family members purchase “plates” from Dec. 3 to Dec. 13 with all proceeds donated to the Christmas Community Hamper project.
“Now we donate $2 to buy a plate for the homeless people,” said Logan. “I’ve looked around and I’ve seen lots of plates hanging on the doorways.”