It wasn’t their traditional meeting format, but the Estevan chapter of 100 Kids who Care still came together and showed their support for a deserving cause.
The meeting was held March 26 through a digital forum, as opposed to the traditional get-together, due to the ongoing restrictions associated with the COVID-19 pandemic.
An official tally for the number of kids present wasn’t taken, since there were two or three children on some phone lines.
“A large part of what our group is all about is getting the children together,” said Estevan chapter committee member Brooke Spagrud. “It definitely changed things a bit, but all things considering, I would deem it successful because at the end of the day, we still all came together, we still learned from each other and nominated three different local charities who were all very worthy causes of receiving our donation, and we had fun.”
The event was organized using Zoom, so they were all able to meet in the same virtual room. The kids who were tasked with putting together the information to nominate an organization used a pre-recorded video to explain why that agency should receive the money for March.
During the call, chapter members spoke with a representative of the Estevan Kinette Club about supporting the community and different ways people can volunteer. Then Spagrud played all three nomination videos.
She created an online form for the voting process, so after watching all three videos, she sent a link to everybody on the call. Votes were tabulated and the Estevan Salvation Army and the Warm Welcome Kitchen were selected as the winner.
They received the funds through e-transfer.
Warm Welcome Kitchen is currently serving meals out of the Salvation Army’s building twice a week.
But the best part of the night, according to Spagrud, was when the meeting opened and the young people interacted, even if it was through video.
“Seeing their friends again and seeing their faces light up was probably the highlight of the night for me,” she said.
Feedback to the digital format was positive. If they have to use this system again for their June meeting, then they would, she said. Everybody, including the parents, enjoyed the videoconferencing.
“It was fairly simple to use, and maybe it allows people to still join in on the event, even if they’re somewhere else and can’t physically come,” said Spagrud.
