Covenant House: Stand Up For Street Kids!

A few days ago, one of the coolest people I know posted info about a 5k walk for Covenant House. My buddy Mikey is very much involved with Covenant House and as promised, I looked into the event. 

It is held at one of my favourite places ... Dundas Square.

A 5k walk starts and ends there on November 12th, 2011. The drive and force of 450 people raised $122,000 last year and this year, the goal is  levelled at $100,000. Nevertheless, the more the merrier. 

Stand up for Street Kids 5k is just the kind of event I am more than willing to participate in. 

Homelessness can be looked at in both micro and macro levels to determine all of the cons that apply .. especially when there are kids involved. The street isn't a place anyone should call home. Unfortunately, for street kids, it is. Enduring a life of neglect, abuse and an unstable caregiving environment, a lot of kids end up on the street to fend for themselves. 

Anyone living on the streets are vulnerable to physical, emotional and mental harm. They are exposed to drugs, illegal activity and lack of access to basic necessities. About 1/3 of homeless individuals in Canada are kids. 

On top of the amount of detriment that a homeless individual endures in one day, there is also a stigma attached to the label by society. I'd like to make clear that behaviours cannot be accurately and fully understood by confining our observations to just the physical properties of a situation. I encourage you to look at the familial and social influences one has before misjudging them on an individual level, and be aware that with the confinement of our observations, you are judging by the formidable barrier. Eyes and ears are closed, but their mouth is running a mile a minute maintaining the stigma. 

This isn't anything new.

What COULD be new is that more and more people get involved than ever before by either participating, donating or volunteering in events like this. From my personal experience, I've observed more people willing to gather and spend money on events that cater to their hobbies. Let's use that same energy to help street kids this November.

I completely understand when people are skeptical about giving money to organizations, unsure of which set of hands it actually ends up in. If that is the case, come out and volunteer with me. 

You can register as an individual, family or corporate. 

Help me help Mikey help the street kids. 

This event is sponsored by Starbucks, CITYTV, Pizza Nova and Pareto.

For the statistics on Homeless Youth, click here

For offline participation and more information, please contact:

Covenant House Step Up for Street Kids 5K
Andrea Cochrane  416-204-7088
cochrane@covenanthouse.ca

For volunteering, please contact:

Jacqueline Herrington
416-204-7038herrington@covenanthouse.ca