PC Charity helps send kids to camp

 

Sending kids to camp or putting them into extra curricular activities can at times be tough. Providing the same kind of childhood activities for a special needs child can also be challenging but that’s why there are organizations like the President’s Choice Children’s Charity. 

On Aug. 17 Tina Shipley, owner of Tina’s No Frills, presented a $600 grant to 11-year-old Ethen Tracey and his dad Terry. The grant will allow Ethen, who has Cerebral Palsy, the opportunity to go to camp again for another year. 

“What we do is twice a year we collect donations though our tills and then depending on the year, they change up what the icons look like but it always has something to do with children’s charity,” said Shipley. 

“I’ve found that the town is really generous with things like that.” 

“Ethen goes to a camp in the summertime called Camp Bonaventure put on by Between Friends Club. It helps special needs kids have a really good summer,” said Terry. 

“The camp is just a great thing for these kids, it’s awesome a lot of one-on-one hands on (activities), very great for the kids.”

The grant was presented at the store to the Tracey family, and there was cake and a celebration for Ethen. The funds come from donations collected at all Loblaw’s stores, and funds collected within each province stay in that province. 

“We collect donations at the store twice a year and I’ve found that the town is really generous with things like that,” said Shipley. 

“I think it’s a wonderful charity.”

This past year was the sixth year Ethen has gone to Camp Bonaventure. Kids who attend the camp get an opportunity to go canoeing, swimming, horseback riding, overnight campout, water fights and even go to Heritage Park.

In 2012 there was over $1.1 million raised which helped 57 families with special needs assistance, which was used for 141 nutrition programs that fed over 20,492 children in Alberta. Since 1989 more than 86 million reached more than 1.3 million children across Canada through the Presidents Choice Children’s Charity. In Alberta 100 per cent of funds raised here stay here.