Taking the NightShift [N. Clark]

Since WE Day came to Vancouver in September, Delview’s own Me to We Committee has been quietly planning ways to give back to the communities that support them. This January, they began to put their plans into action. Their first step was a trip to the NightShift Street Ministries soup kitchen in Whalley, where they did their best to make a difference in the lives of as many people as they could.
These Delview students spent a few hours handing out food, drinks and clothing to those who couldn’t afford to buy their own. They set up in many different stations, and spent some time chatting with the people they were helping. The Me to We Committee was lucky to have met some incredibly interesting people that night, all with a story to tell.
When they weren’t working directly with Whalley’s poorest citizens, the students were elsewhere in Nightshift’s building, sorting clothes to send to Haiti. After all, Canada certainly isn’t the only country to have citizens in need, and both NightShift and Delview students recognized that and spread their care and help outwards.
Whether they were handing out basic necessities directly to the people who needed them, or preparing other necessities to be sent to a different continent altogether, the students did it with compassion, and spent the night enjoying the warm, glowing feeling that spreads through everyone when they perform a few selfless actions.
NightShift is clearly more than just a soup kitchen; it gives more than just food to the community, but care and a sense of belonging, as well. Delview’s Me to We Committee was extremely fortunate to have been able to join in on their efforts that night, and they look forward to hopefully going back soon.

Help for Haiti [N. Clark]

Delview has always been known as a small school with a big heart, and this year that heart expanded to include all of Haiti when news reached students’ ears of the devastating earthquake that struck the already suffering country. The Me to We Committee acted quickly, and within the week they organized a simple donation collection that allowed all students and teachers to make a difference in Haiti, no matter what the size of the donation.
Lasting for only a week because of the semester break deadline, the collection amassed an astounding amount of money, nonetheless. In just those few five days, students donated $2,400. With the government matching the donation, the total was raised to an incredible $4800.
There was very little advertising or complex organization, and no incentive beyond simply helping out, so the collection was not expected to make much money. Students at Delview are known for their compassion, however, and they have always stepped up when the time came to help out, so perhaps it should not be so surprising that they gave as generously as they did. Simply standing by and watching a tragedy carry out has never been something that students at this school are willing to do.
The suffering that the citizens of Haiti are going through is unimaginable, but the world is reaching out to help them, and Delview students are among those doing what they can to aid those who are most in need, and try to make a positive difference in their lives.