Published July 18, 2017 20:02
Source http://www.winnipegfreepress.com/our-communities/times/Youth-against-bullying-violence-drug-use-434973863.html
A non-profit organization has raised more than just money to support other local organizations with a youth run.
Kaur Meets World is an organization that aims to ease the lives of those who struggle with drug use, bullying and violence through education and bringing communities together to rally against these obstacles.
On June 24, Kaur Meets World hosted the first ever Lion’s Run at Kildonan Park to raise money for the Boys and Girls Clubs of Winnipeg, Addictions Foundation Manitoba and Resource Assistance for Youth.
"We wanted to raise money and bring community and youth together and raise awareness and have that impact on youth and show them that there is support out there for them," Manpreet Grewal-Kaler, one of four co-founders of KMW, said.
"All these things tied in together because we found that those were primary issues that affected youth."
Grewal-Kaler is an intensive care nurse and said her job helped her realize the need for preventative work among young people and her group decided to come together to collaborate.
"The youth that we see, if they are overdose patients or patients going through a mental health crisis, we see where that comes from," she explained. "There are so many factors — environment and family, the experiences in life, severe bullying — and to deal with those, start with primary prevention, and that is education, support and showing that we are here for you."
Almost 100 people showed up in the rainy day to support Kaur Meets World and the three local organizations they were raising fund for. The Royal Bank of Canada was one of their sponsors and gave a $1,000 grant to go toward the BGCW.
"Being involved in an event like Kaur Meets World Run helps us to continue to build awareness of who we are and how we support children and youth in the City of Winnipeg," Michelle Schmidt, director of programs at BGCW, said. "This event also helps us to continue to do the work we do, mainly working with over 3,200 children and youth each year throughout the city of Winnipeg."
The run purposely took place at the end of the school year since, according to Grewal-Kaler, this is a time when students can be stressed out with final exams, going into the summer and going to a different grade next year.
"We wanted to raise money but mainly bring the community together to have that impact," she said.