St. John’s College

os it

summer 2005

Human need at home and abroad

SJC tellows reach out to

SONS ANON

Up close and personal with some of the new goats recently united with Southern Sudan
families thanks to the SJC Outreach Committee!

The faces of the St. John’s
College Outreach Committee
change from year-to-year, but
one central goal remains: to con-
tribute to the lives of those less
fortunate in our community—
be it Vancouver or on the other
side of the world. Since the

early days of College life, resi-
dents have found ways to

be involved through activities
such as food, clothing, and
makeup donations to local chari-
ties, working at soup kitchens,
and learning about our communi-
ties through guest speakers

and documentary films. Two of
the Committee’s most recent
projects invoked residents to
learn about the lack of provisions
for people in their communities,
and to be active participants

in fundraising ventures to meet
some of these basic human
needs here in Vancouver, and as

far away as Southern Sudan.

Vancouver Project

It is well known that Vancouver

has a rising epidemic of home-
lessness, alcohol/drug addiction,
and HIV infection, particularly
concentrated in the Downtown
Eastside. A few of the challenges
facing this community include
lack of sustainable shelter, nutri-
tion, consistent counseling and
support, access to health profes-
sionals and programs, and

employment.

In October 2004, the Outreach
Committee contacted the
Lookout Emergency Aid Society

in Vancouver, which provides

safe housing and counseling sup-

port for people recovering from
drug addictions, abusive relation-

ships, and mental illness.

“Our experience is that when
decent housing is provided for
people their lives tend to stabi-
lize, while those who remain
in shelters have a tendency to
use drugs and alcohol and
so forth,” said Al Mitchell,
Emergency Services Manager

at the Lookout Society.

make a difference

By: Donna Dykeman on
behalf of the 2004-05 SJC
Outreach Committee

Through the Lookout Society, St.
John’s College became a housing
sponsor for Taylor, a woman

who wants to leave a world of
drug addiction and depression
behind her and start a new life

in Vancouver. The sponsorship
commitment provides funding to
supplement the cost of an apart-
ment for one year in a location
where Taylor will have a low prob-

ability of exposure to illicit drugs.

College residents raised money
through two ventures: an auction
of residents’ talents at the
October Harvest Dinner, and

the sale of hand-made packages
of candy at the Christmas
Dinner. The auction included
such items as home-cooked
meals of international flavours,
sailing and music lessons, a sere-
nade, and even a bedtime tuck-in
service. Between the two initia-
tives, we raised $900 to help
Taylor pay her rent. Residents
also made contributions to a
Christmas Hamper of household
items and groceries to assist

her as she settled into her new
home. Although the duration of
our commitment is for one year,
we hope Taylor will be able to
continue to establish a new life

for herself in Vancouver.

Southern Sudan Project

In the same academic year, the
Outreach Committee got involved
with an international aid initiative

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