The Editor, Canada's national Child Day is held on Nov. 20 each year, as enacted by the Parliament of Canada in 1993. All members of the House of Commons agreed in 1989 to eliminate child poverty by the year 2000. It still hasn't happened.
Let's consider the smaller picture of our community. In 2012, 38 per cent of food bank users were children. B.C. had the second worst child poverty rate at 14.3 per cent.
Our own apparently affluent community of Richmond exceeds the provincial average by a considerable margin. This is not a statistic to be proud of and one that various levels of government seem to continually struggle to improve the outcomes. The Richmond Food Bank is very appreciative of the support that comes from within our community, which allows us to at least address a major symptom of youth poverty: malnutrition and hunger.
We see on a regular basis the donations, small and large, that allow us to provide a reasonable level of food support for those in need. I would especially like to note the contribution the children make through efforts like Scare Hunger food drives in October and the more traditional drives done in December.
We are thankful to our partners, which allow us to go an extra yard and address the social and educational needs of youth.
Having a special day allows us to refocus on the needs of children within our community and the larger global community. Please do your part to help.
Gary Lake
Richmond Food Bank Society, past president
