April 2021 Community Wash Partner

We are happy to announce that our April Community Wash Partner is:

Starfish Pack Program – Surrey

The Surrey Starfish Pack Program is a weekend food security initiative, in which a backpack filled with food is distributed to children in need so that they have enough food for the weekend. The program provides (2 Breakfasts, 2 Lunches, and 2 Dinners) packed in backpacks, which are delivered to local schools and are distributed to the children in need for the weekend. With no paid staff and no government funding, the program relies entirely on local community support for both funding and volunteers!

On the morning after a storm, the residents of a seaside village awoke to find their beach covered with hundreds of dying starfish which had washed ashore. As the community gathered at the end of the beach, they spoke in hushed tones about the great sadness of the disaster.

Suddenly, a young girl ran towards the beach and began picking the starfish up one at a time, and then throwing them back into the water. A village elder walked towards the young girl and said:

“Child, there are hundreds of starfish on this beach ad this must be happening on other beaches up and down the coast. You must understand that you alone can’t possibly make a difference.”

The little girl looked up at the old man, smiled, and bent down to pick up another starfish.

As she threw it back into the sea, she replied:

“I made a huge difference to that one!”

The Parable of the Starfish

About the STARFISH PACK PROGRAM

As a response to an Abbotsford Teacher’s cry for help, the Starfish Pack Program started as a pilot project with 6 backpacks in 2013. The teacher was feeding many of her Kindergarten students who were coming to school on Monday hungry. This in turn affected their moods and their ability to focus in class. The Starfish Pack was designed to change this situation.

By providing these children with backpacks containing enough food to get them through the weekend, the children are then set-up to flourish. As a result of the program, teachers reported improvements in the children’s reading skills, math skills, and abilities to focus.

The program has now expanded to over 20 cities and is helping to make sure children across BC and Whatcom County don’t have to worry about weekend hungry.

The Surrey Starfish Pack program currently serves 4 schools in the Surrey district; they also currently fill 60 backpacks for children of these schools. These schools are chosen by the Surrey School Board, and the packs are distributed by the schools. The program is volunteer run, ranging from volunteers in the community to volunteers from the Rotary Club of Surrey.

In Surrey, BC alone, research indicates that 13,000 Surrey residents (of which 41% are children), turn to food banks to meet the basic human need for food security. Approximately $600 fills one backpack for an entire school year. With how the pandemic has shifted our everyday routines, it has also affected the program in how they prepare the packs. To ensure the safety of the children, the volunteers, and all associated parties, Starfish Packs has temporarily switched to providing grocery store gift cards to the children and their families.

Wrapping Up

It’s already April, but we’re able to donate so much to the initiatives in our community BECAUSE of our incredible customers.

Until then, stay tuned for more updates on our CWP program!

More about our Community Wash Partner Program