The Lloydminster Men’s Shelter received a major springtime boost thanks to a generous donation from a local high school program.
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For the men’s shelter, the donation came at just the right time.
“This time of the year, as opposed to Christmas and other times of the year, we start to run really low on supplies,” said men’s shelter case worker Kaillee McPherson.
The shelter received 28 new sets of sheets and pillows, along with clothes, hygiene products and more.
“The guys spend a lot of time on the streets (during) cold winter months and a brand-new set of sheets and a brand-new pillow is something that’s going to be absolutely amazing for them to have,” said McPherson. “Some of them may have never experienced that in their lifetime. It’s going to make a big impact on all 28 guys here.”
The donation was made possible thanks to The Beba Project, a Holy Rosary High School initiative. The Beba Project raises money throughout the year to support families in the community.
Christian Apostolovski Meridian Source
The project was the brainchild of Sebastien McCarthy, made possible thanks to efforts by the group and his Beba Boys.
“We couldn’t do it without the whole group, there’s 30 or 40 of us and everybody raises money, everybody goes to coffee houses,” said McCarthy, who was standing proud with his boys, Aafreen Winson, Nash Macalla and Rylan Iversen.
“We shopped, we helped with hauling and all that,” explained Macalla. “Most of us, we do lots of fundraisers for the group and then there’s people like Seb that come up with the idea.”
Macalla said you have to take a step forward to make change.
“I think if you want change, you just need to take that step forward in doing it. Take the initiative and start doing something,” he said.
While the Beba Project has traditionally focused on assisting local families, teacher leader Lisa Marie Kreese noted the group is now broadening its reach.
“When Seb brought his idea forward to the team, he’s like, ‘If moms and babies are in trouble, chances are, there’s a man on the other end of that that needs help as well,’” she said.
After consulting the Beba Project group, they decided to donate $1,000, which quickly stretched further.
“There’s probably $2,000 worth of product that he was able to get for about $1,000,” she said.
Iversen points out the skills they’re learning will be passed down to future Beba Project members as they graduate.
“You can just keep passing it on to the grades below you,” he said. “Once you graduate, you’re kind of out of the project.”
McPherson summed everything up with her astonishment at the efforts the students went through to help the community.
“It’s kids like these who are going to change our world.”
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