Edmonton – A grade 1 class at a St. Albert school is setting an example of the true meaning of the holiday season.
Forty students at Ecole Father Jan delivered 30 backpacks filled with essentials like toothpaste, pajamas, and jackets to the Zebra Child Protection Centre which supports abused children.
“This is our way of providing hope to some people right here in our community who are in very difficult situations,” says Ecole Father Jan teacher Monique Auray.
Zebra says the backpacks are essential for children who come into the centre and aren’t able to go home for at least one night.
“It’s important for the children and youth who are victims of abuse and family violence to know that there are people who care about them,” said Det. Nicole Chapdelaine, who works in the Zebra centre.
The Ecole Father Jan students spent several months collecting the items.
“They’re very engaged. It was a big deal every day someone brought something in,” said Auray.
The project is part of an annual community services initiative for grade 1 students at the school.
“We decided to help them out because not all kids are as fortunate as our kids, so we went into the aspect of giving and helping others,” explained Auray.
Zebra is a collaborative effort by police officers, social works and volunteer child advocates, who work with crown prosecutors, medical and mental health professionals.
The team’s focus is protecting children from further trauma, providing nurturing and healing and bringing criminals who abuse children to justice.
Zebra is the first multi-disciplined child advocacy centre in Canada.
According to Zebra, the number of children who come through the centre’s doors has grown from 1,083 in 2012 to 1,574 through the first nine months of 2013.
“365, seven days a week, our members are out responding on the weekends, our CART teams, our detectives, as well as the police, RCMP and such, just supporting these families. So this need is continual. Like I said, as quick as it comes in the door, it comes out just as fast,” said Det. Chapdelaine.
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