With a strong sense of the struggles that go on beyond the Bowen bubble, islanders contributed $45,000 in support of a Syrian family.
“A sense of collective responsibility” for Syrian refugees is what Lisbeth Haigh attributes Bowen’s fundraising success. She is referring to the local campaign to raise $30,000 in 30 days.
Haigh-Turner, who was one of the drivers of the fundraising campaign says that members working on the project came together naturally from a sense of global connection.
Haigh-Turner says that the campaign “was an easy sell. There was, and is, a crisis going on.“ She says that she grew up in a large city and was used to finding ways to respond to a crisis, whether it is domestic or international. “Bowen can be a blessing and a curse. We have the ability here to isolate ourselves from the world at large. “ Haigh-Turner says that this fund raising was a great way for Bowen to reach beyond the needs of the locals. “Bowen shouldn’t be an obstacle but a conduit in the world.”
The goal of $30,000 in 30 days was set so that there could be some fast action leading into the holiday season. “We didn’t have a lot of turnaround time and we were starting with zero capital. The giving season was coming up so we had to act quickly.” Haigh-Turner lists so many groups and individuals who stepped up to help raise funds. “The Smolar children raised $887 busking in Vancouver. Tyler Matzen put on an elf costume set up his electric piano in the Ruddy to raise money; BICS raised almost $1000. Children took on individual tasks such as extra chores, forsaking allowance money, having bakes sales and donating Craft Fair income.”
Professional musians and performers Shari Ulrich, Barney Bentall and Tom Taylor “hosted an evening of music, along with a silent auction. Seven hills yoga donated all the proceeds from a day’s worth of yoga classes and Artisan Eats staff donated their entire Saturday’s tips.”
The Little Red Church donated proceeds from Dickens Christmas and the KKN donated benefits from the annual silent auction while municipality staff “opted out of their annual Christmas party donating the $500.” Some children got creative with fundraising. Ella and Thomas, raised almost $700 by committing to wear ugly “Christmas sweaters” for the entire month of December. The Snug donated $1,500, and “The Cates Hill chapel congregation raised an incredible amount of money. The Rotary club and the Legion made sizable donations. All the shops on Bowen offered to have our donation jars. Many community members went to the credit union and donated out of their own pocket.”
The financial goal was set to establish a bare minimum that it would take to get a family set up in Vancouver. “It was an ambitious goal, but it will allow them to gain a foothold.” she says.
While budget details are being finalized, the extra $16,000 may help to bring two uncles of the children to Vancouver from Lebanon. “The father has two brothers, 23 and 25. So if we can swing it, we are trying to bring them here. It would mean they could have a family reunion along with family that is in Burnaby.”
