“Christmas is all about giving to people who need support, especially children and youth who can’t help themselves. It feels good to help out families in our own community who are struggling,” said Lisa Kennelly, who co-owns Sears Courtenay with her husband, Dustin Parker.
The family-owned Sears store has put up a Tree of Wishes for the fifth year in a row. The Tree of Wishes campaign enables generous community members to purchase a gift or donate towards a gift for a child whose family is facing financial hardships. Sears runs the campaign in partnership with The John Howard Society of North Island, and the gifts will go towards children and youth in the KidStart Mentoring Program and other John Howard programs.
“The Tree of Wishes has become a tradition with Sears in the Comox Valley and customers look forward to helping out,” said Kennelly.
John Howard KidStart is the Comox Valley’s only one-to-one mentoring program for children and youth. The volunteer-based program focuses on the positive development of kids’ ages 6-18 who could benefit from having stable, committed, and caring adults in their lives.
There are approximately 50 children and youth on the waitlist for a KidStart mentor in the Comox Valley. For more information please contact KidStart Coordinator Wendy Thurlborn at 250-338-7341 or wendyt@jhsni.bc.ca. Visit John Howard on the web at www.jhsni.bc.ca