Starfish pack program launches second year

After a successful launch in April of “starfish pack” program, Penticton Rotary is ready to do it again.

Starfish pack is a program which provides backpacks of food to local schoolaged children and their families on the weekends. The backpacks are packed with food by the Penticton Rotary with support from Save-On Foods. The packs are then delivered to a local pre-selected school. They are distributed to children on Friday and returned empty on Monday for the process to begin again.

After hearing from the families who are recipients of the backpacks as well as the teacher and principal’s praise and need for the program, we would like to make this program bigger. “There is such a need in our community for this program. If money grew on trees, we would supply unlimited backpacks to all of the children in our community that go hungry on weekends.” said program chair Tracy Van Raes, a local Rotarian. “The fact is, money doesn’t grow on trees. One backpack of food for a year costs $525 and so we are turning to our community for assistance”

This program works in partnership with the Okanagan Boys and Girls Club and is happening in 15 cities across B.C. with more signing on every year. Earlier in the year the program was the recipient of a Community Foundation of the South Okanagan grant that enabled Penticton to pilot this program with 11 backpacks in one school from April until the end of the school year.

“Since bringing attention to this program, we have received some amazing donations from local business owners and JCI Penticton which allow us to continue the program in September,” said Van Raes. “From here we need to expand. The need is go great. Children in our community are coming to school hungry on Monday mornings. That child might be your neighbor or that child might sit next to your son or daughter in a classroom every day.”

To sponsor a child’s backpack for a year or get involved with fundraising, contact Van Raes at tracy@totalrestore.ca. Donations can also be made directly to the Starfish program by visiting http://starfishpack.com/penticton