KELOWNA – It goes beyond what’s visible: the homeless. The impact of poverty is often hidden behind closed doors.
That’s what the United Way of the Central and South Okanagan/Similkameen (CSO) is saying as it gears up to launch its first-ever poverty simulation events in Kelowna and Penticton next week.
“This is an interactive reality experience for people to help our communities understand what poverty is and what it isn’t,” says Shelley Gilmore, Executive Director of the United Way CSO.
The latest numbers from Statistics Canada (2013) indicate 5,790 children in Kelowna and 1,460 in Penticton were growing up in poverty.
Participants in the event will be given a card outlining their simulation. For three hours, participants live a ‘month in the shoes’ of the person in the given mock scenario.
“It could be a young mom barely scraping life together with three kids that want to play soccer but she has to feed them first and it’s a lot more comprehensive than just somebody who is living on the streets,” says Gilmore.
However, not enough people have signed up to take part in the poverty simulation for the event to go on.
“At this point in time we do need at least 30 more people registered in both Kelowna and Penticton to make it go,” says Gilmore.
The event would take place next Tuesday at UBC Okanagan and next Wednesday at the Penticton Lakeside Resort.
Click here for more information and to register as a participant.