Bringing People Together

03.11.2020
1 min read
3 children playing hopscotch on a school playground

On World Mental Health Day, we wanted to share this touching story with you from a school in New Brunswick:

“There was a young lady who wrote on the bathroom stall walls that she was lonely, that nobody cared about her, that she had no friends. Many students wrote back in response encouraging her that she had value. But she still had no one to hang out or develop a friendship with. This young lady was introduced to me and we adopted her into our breakfast program family. She has volunteered every day since and has become completely committed to serving in this capacity.

We often think of how this program helps the kids who benefit from the food, but we sometimes overlook how important it can be in the life of the volunteers who serve. The 45 minutes to an hour that we spend together every morning prepping and serving has helped to foster a sense of belonging, purpose and pride in each of my volunteers. I cherish this program more every day. It is a very powerful opportunity that we provide, and this young lady instantly gained 12 friends in one morning!”

Visit the United Nations website to learn more about World Mental Health Day.