A group of health-care workers at Ridge Meadows Hospital have proved that the care and nurturing they provide to others extends beyond the emergency room.
Taken aback by the show of support the community has made to front-line health-care workers, emergency room nurse Sean Reid said staff in his department - everyone from doctors to janitors - found a way to support society’s most vulnerable.
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In partnership with real-estate agent Cass McLeod and his colleagues, the group was able to raise more than $6,500 for the Starfish Backpack program.
The donation was announced on a MeadowRidge Rotary Club Zoom conference call Tuesday afternoon.
“We were just in awe about seeing how really incredible things were happening in the community relating to people wanting to take care of others,” Reid said on the call, adding that health-care workers have received high accolades for their work. “We wanted to give back to others that have been adversely impacted by this pandemic.”
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The Starfish Backpack program provides free weekend meals to students in School District 42.
Due to school no longer being in session, the program can no longer provide students with a backpack of food for the weekend. Instead, Starfish Backpack Program chairwoman Ineke Boekhorst said, kids and parents can pick up a gift certificate every week which they can only use to buy food.
There are currently 115 kids in 15 local schools participating in the program.
The contribution from emergency department staff and real-estate agents means that the program can increase the number of children it serves by 20 to 24 children.
“I’m glad we’re helping with that, it’s a great thing that Sean put together and I’m so appreciate that he called me,” McLeod said, adding that every real-estate agent he called was all on-board with helping out.