In good times, we can often overlook the most vulnerable people in our community, but the pandemic brought their needs to the forefront of our minds and our hearts.
In early April 2020, Enhance West Van responded to the Covid-19 pandemic and the needs of North Shore families who were struggling to put food on their table. Our program provided grocery gift cards to youth and their families who are struggling, and this simple intervention was life changing for many.
Thank you to everyone who donated and sponsored – you made a difference!
The following letters we received from the community, explain just how crucial this support was.
“Thank you all for your dedication, service to support your community, and generous time to make such a huge difference in our families life. I have so much gratitude for all of your thoughtful kindness. I want to share how appreciative I am for the support that made it possible to get through the challenging long haul of this pandemic. May you know how much peace you gave my heart providing such an essential need. Thank you for giving us such precious gifts for our family, especially joy! May you all be as blessed as you have blessed us!”
– February 2022
In my time as a Youth Outreach Worker with the District of West Vancouver, I have grappled with how best to support vulnerable people, now more than ever due to the Pandemic. It is a testament to your depth of understanding, as a Society, that you make it a priority to provide relief to those affected within the West Vancouver Community, with your Food Security Program. Our Youth Outreach Team sees first hand the difference this program makes. How does one measure the relief a mother feels knowing she can make her kids healthy nutritious meals? How does one quantify the sleep a youth gets in his own bed, after your grocery subsidy allowed his family to pay rent, and therefore remain housed? These gifts are invaluable. Your efforts in this area are life changing.
Our team works every day to ensure youth clients and their families feel connected to the community, and know that they are cared for and valued. As a result of your efforts and compassion, this message comes through in spades.
With gratitude (and on behalf of our Outreach Team),
Jan (Youth Outreach Worker)
-May 2021
I’m a step-grandmother raising two indigenous youth who have been with me since they were toddlers. I have a pension, as I was a teacher, and therefore consider myself fortunate. But I’m very proud so it’s hard for me to admit to anyone how hard it’s been. Rent keeps going up, and I’m tired. I live with constant financial strain. Sometimes the feelings of stress and panic are very bad.
My grandkids both held part time jobs from the time they were young teens, and helped me with monthly expenses. Since Covid began, the kids have both been laid off from their jobs, and things have gotten much more difficult for me, on a fixed income. None of us qualified for the government Covid funding subsidies.
The giftcards we have received have helped us to stay above water. I don’t even want to think about what we would have done without that help. We might well have become homeless, because I would have been short on the rent. I want to say thank you, but the words don’t show how deeply I appreciate this support. It really does take a village to raise children.
-February 2021

Thanks to the generosity of our West Vancouver community, our food security programme was able to provide grocery gift cards to youth and their families who are struggling during the pandemic.