A group of Grade 12 economics students from Cambie secondary showed their teamwork, organizational savvy and community spirit to help boost the Richmond Christmas Fund recently.
The students, who were part of Reach Richmond, a program which is designed to bring the aspect of philanthropy to various high school classes in the district, ran a carnival games day at Aberdeen Centre on Nov. 26, raising a total of $457.85.
But while that money will be put towards helping local, needy families, the exercise was also valuable in exposing youngsters to the realm of community volunteerism and a good dose of personal development, said Jacky Tang and Gurdy Jagde, who co-founded Reach.
“Most of the students who were involved said they learned some real-life, interpersonal skills they felt would be valuable in the future,” Tang said. “And they learned more about their community and the role non-profit organizations play.”
They also expressed a desire to volunteer with the Christmas fund in the future and recommend to others to get involved with future Reach projects.
“That’s been a major point of this program – to foster a sense of philanthropy and social responsibility with young students,” said Tang who graduated in 2012 from Burnett secondary and is now studying pharmaceutical sciences at UBC.
Jagde graduated from McNair secondary and is studying criminology at Kwantlen Polytechnic University. Both were part of Richmond Cares Richmond Gives’ (RCRG) Youth Now program, which connects youth with local charities; now they serve as board members.
With this year’s Reach program completed, the two are looking at the coming year and an expansion to other schools now the groundwork has been laid.
Next year, the Richmond Christmas Fund will remain connected with Cambie secondary, while Tang and Jagde are open to get involved with other schools and non-profit organizations.
