The Parkcrest Elementary library received $10,000 from the Indigo Love of Reading Foundation on Giving Tuesday (Image Credit: CFJC Today)

By Chad Klassen

GIVING TUESDAY

Parkcrest Elementary reaps the reward of Giving Tuesday with $10,000 cheque

Dec 3, 2019 | 5:16 PM

KAMLOOPS — December 3rd marks the seventh annual Giving Tuesday, a day dedicated to charity to offset the consumerism of Black Friday and Cyber Monday. The movement is happening around the world, encouraging people to start giving as the Christmas and holiday season begins.

In Kamloops, many non-profits want to get their message out about the importance of giving in the community.

Parkcrest Elementary was among the big recipients on Giving Tuesday, receiving a $10,000 cheque from the Indigo Love of Reading Foundation.

“It was really the community. It was a ground-swell of emails and letters saying this terrible thing happened in our community and we just would love any suport we can get,” said executive director of the Indigo Love of Reading Foundation Rose Lipton.

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The donation comes on the same day Parkcrest’s library in the temporary George Hilliard School opened. Even though the donation was outside the foundation’s regular grant cycle, it felt compelled to do something for the school. When Parkcrest Elementary burned down in September, it lost 16,000 books from their library.

“To me, the school is the centre of a community,” noted Lipton. “Families, kids, teachers, everyone just spends so much time there and it’s really the lifeblood, so losing that, I think that really struck me. Then just seeing how much the community rallied around the school.”

For the United Way, Giving Tuesday is a day to bring to light the impact of giving to non-profits and other charities not only during the holidays but also the entire year.

“For us, it’s about raising awareness right in the middle of our campaign at the moment, so we’re in the giving season,” said executive director of the Thompson-Nicola-Cariboo United Way Danalee Baker. “It’s a chance for us to say ‘thank you’ but also raise awareness of all the wonderful things that have been happening in our community.”

The United Way supports 55 non-profits in the region. It is looking to fill the gap left behind by its Jail and Bail fundraising event, which is on hiatus. On Giving Tuesday, the United Way offered its appreciation to the Kamloops RCMP for its support of the event over the last 10 years.

“We had the opportunity to go present to their staff and members to just say ‘thank you’ for a decade worth of fun with United Way. The generosity has equalled $650,000,” said Baker.

As for Parkcrest’s library, the $10,000 means it can slowly start to expand on its 4,000-book collection.