Most Montreal elementary and high schools students will be back in class in just a few weeks. With the date quickly approaching, some parents are struggling to get their kids the much needed back-to-school supplies.
Montreal’s Welcome Hall Mission is trying to fill that gap with its annual giveaway of back-to-school supplies. The aim, organizers say, is to help kids feel included and have a sense of pride.
“We think that every student that goes back to school should go back to school well equipped, not just with what they need but with a sense of belonging,” said Sam Watts, the organization’s president and CEO.
For more than two decades, the mission held the giveaway at its Saint-Henri location. This year it decided to also host the event in Montreal North because of the number of families that went to the original location last year.
“Five hundred families from Montreal North came down to Saint-Henri and we said, ‘Hey, it’s time for us to do this event in Montreal North,'” Watts said.
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This year, the organization is giving away 800 backpacks with supplies in Montreal North, and in Saint-Henri they’ll donate another 1,200 to kids from other areas. Staff at the Mission say they’re seeing more and more families in need in Montreal North.
“The increase is significant,” Watts told Global News, “not just because of inflation, but also because of the demographic mix.”
The borough has among the poorest and most racially diverse population on the island. Friday’s event also served as a way to inform clients about various community, academic and mental health resources.
“What we really need to do is prevent people from falling into situations where the only answer is an emergency service,” Watts said.
Some students who received school supplies Friday said they were happy with the donations and were looking forward to returning to school.
“I really want to meet my friends,” said 13 year-old Nour Bohras Mokhtaria. “I miss them a lot.”
Nine year-old Elizabeth Lawal said she too was glad classes were resuming soon with her friends.
“We do a lot of things together,” she said while showing off sets of pencils, markers and books that she received in a backpack from the mission.
The giveaway in Saint-Henri will happen Aug. 15.
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