West Coast Kids Cancer Foundation

Burnaby, BC

When a child stays in the hospital for weeks or months, it’s hard for the parents to eat full meals every day. Resorting to foods like granola bars and chips are often the easiest choices to make, but it makes the hospital stay that much harder. Every week, the West Coast Kids Cancer Foundation (WCK) stocks a freezer in the BC Children’s Hospital family lounge with frozen, easy-to-heat meals, as well as snacks that accommodate different preferences. This program is called Food in the Freezer. And with stickers for nonprofits, WCK is able to spread the word about their programs to countless parents. Surviving on crackers no moreA smiling woman holding a bag or chips and a frozen dinner. Prior to the launch of Food in the Freezer, parents told WCK they were surviving on coffee shop banana bread and crackers eaten in their hospital rooms as they stayed next to their child’s bedside. This was their reality for weeks, if not months, as their child received treatment. Medical staff at BC Children’s Hospital asked for help from WCK to make sure parents were nourished and cared for. WCK offers several programs. And the organization wanted to make sure parents knew about all the ways WCK can help. Thanks to the 4imprint one by one® grant, WCK was able to order stickers to put on each meal. “The impact of Food in the Freezer has been profound. Parents have told us how grateful they are and how important it is to have access to nourishing meals while being able to stay by their child’s side. And now, these stickers give parents more info and point to our website so they can look up other programs we offer,” said Kathleen Hung, marketing coordinator and graphic designer at WCK. Sharing support beyond hospital stays with a sticker Even on a normal day, it can be difficult to get nourishing meals on the table at home. When a child who is receiving treatment and traveling back and forth to appointments, eating full meals is even harder. WCK’s Nourish at Home program helps relieve the load of grocery shopping and meal planning by sending prepared frozen meals straight to parents’ doors. WCK also has a program where they connect patients to other kids with a cancer diagnosis. And a mental health program that provides peer support for parents and caregivers, so they can connect and support each other.

For more information about West Coast Kids Cancer Foundation, please visit https://www.wckfoundation.ca/ opens in new window