The Kids are Alright

Before I went into the creative arts, I was working towards my Education degree. I guess it had a lot to do with my history of working with kids of all ages.

I grew up a camp counsellor, lifeguard and service worker with the City of St. John’s. Having met so many kids over the years, I came to realize that nature and nurture play a huge role in who we grow up to be.

A Labour of Love

I worked in the Parks and Recreation Department for the City of St. John’s for twelve years. TWELVE YEARS b’ys. I only left my job in rec because I had started working full-time in marketing four years previously and knew the time had come to focus. Plus, unlocking the Mews Center at 7am every Saturday and Sunday morning, after playing downtown til 3am every other night before, AND working all week at my marketing job became a bit much.

From Junior Leader at 14 until I ‘retired’ at 28, I worked at each of the city’s recreation centres and at every public pool. I also swept every floor, scrubbed every toilet and served half of the city. I also hung out with, looked after and taught hundreds and hundreds of kids – kids from money, kids with nothing; with all the gifts you could imagine, and far less.

Coming Full Circle

Today I sit on the steering committee for the City of St. John’s R.E.A.L. program, a critical program, which via city and partner funding, allows one in 10 kids in our city to take part in recreation and leisure experiences, from swimming to soccer to art and beyond. I also sit on the board of the City of St. John’s Boys and Girls Clubs. Helping to direct and shape the future of two of the most amazing kid-serving organizations is something I take a lot of pride in.

Half and Half

The board of the Boys and Girls Clubs came up with an amazing idea to organize a fundraiser that aimed to start and grow an online 50/50 campaign. Web development + design + a big idea = what our company loves!

So we got involved. Our website lets you buy tickets right there on the site. There are hand ticket sales going too. This is quite an experiment and I look forward to watching the kitty grow. Like literally – every week we’re gonna pack pounds on our kitty-cat as the total rises.

Partner Love

Thank you to our friends at NTV, OZFM and Quikprint for helping us get things going. And to everyone who sees our posters, helps sell tickets, or supports our incredible 50/50 fundraiser in any way, thank you! The work the St. John’s Boys and Girls Club do to keep our kids cared for and moving forward to realize their potential is critical to the bigger success of our community, and as you know from reading our other stories on the site, that’s what our company is all about; giving back and helping good ideas come to life!