WAYNE DONALDSON • BREAKING THE CYCLE OF CHILD POVERTY • BURLINGTON, ONT.
It was witnessing the effects of child poverty in Africa two years ago that spurred Wayne Donaldson into action. "Unlike many Canadians, children in developing countries simply can't cut back on spending to make ends meet," says Wayne, the vice- president of purchasing and marketing at Rexel Canada Electrical Inc.
Prompted by the ever-rising price of food and fuel, Wayne felt it was time to make a change. He and a friend decided that, instead of going out for dinner, they'd host dinners at their homes and donate the money they'd save to a charity. This soon snowballed into Hungry for Change, a campaign that provides fun opportunities for people to get together with their friends and families while raising funds for vulnerable children around the world. Last year, electrical companies across Canada joined the challenge by hosting fund-raisers.
To date, the Hungry for Change campaign has raised $200,000 in support of nutrition programs in Canada, Ghana, Uganda, Sierra Leone, Haiti, Bolivia and Ethiopia. Although the committee's ultimate goal is to have all electrical companies across the nation participate, Wayne would also like to extend an invitation to other Canadian industries. – Sarah Jane Silva
Wayne's Me to We Award money will be donated to Hungry for Hungry for Change.
A note from Craig and Marc
It's been a busy time for us at Free the Children and our sister organization, Me to We. Here's what we've been up to over the past year.
• We launched Celebrate for Change, a new campaign in which kids receive donations for peers in need around the world instead of birthday presents.
• For our Halloween for Hunger, a campaign in which youth trick-or-treat for nonperishable food items instead of candy, Canadian kids collected about 25,000 kilograms of food.
• We Day, the largest one-day event of its kind, celebrated the power of young people to change the lives of others.
• Me to We launched several new products to nurture young global citizens. Those products include the Degrassi Goes to Kenya DVD (the cast of the popular TV show teaches kids how to build a better world); The Small Things, the debut album of socially conscious Canadian singer Louise Kent; and a new book, My Maasai Life: From Suburbia to Savannah, by Robin Wiszowaty.
To get your kids involved, visit www.freethechildren.com and www.metowe.com.
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