by Brandon Mayer, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter
A Kemptville duo is celebrating another successful year after wrapping up one of their annual campaigns to raise much needed supplies for homeless people. Ryan Deville and Dakota Boal were featured in an article in the Times in late October of last year, after news of their generosity was revealed by their friend, Andrea Sargeant. The duo’s campaign, called CarePackage4Homeless, has become a yearly tradition, and focuses on providing hygiene and survival items to help get those without a home through Ottawa’s long, cold winters.
Writing on the campaign’s Facebook page (https://www.facebook.com/search/top/?q=CarePackage4Homeless), the duo provided an update on the outcome of the initiative, writing: “This week we were able to complete the packages and make the trip into Ottawa to deliver them to individuals at the shelters and living on the streets. We were very fortunate to have such great individuals, companies, and clubs promote and donate this year. With everyone’s help, we were able to expand on last year and provide more packages for the homeless in Ottawa. We were able to make and donate over 85 bags this year (plus boxes of toothpaste, clothes and food to donate to the shelters).” The post lists what was included in each care package, including survival items such as socks, hats, a scarf and gloves, and a bag to put it all in. The packages also included hygiene supplies, such as a toothbrush, toothpaste, deodorant, lip chap, soap, and shampoo. Candies and snacks were also included, with the added bonus of a Tim Horton’s gift card in each package.
“We have enjoyed doing this with the help of everyone since we started last year,” the post continues. “All individuals were very thankful of all the donations. The smiles that we were able to put on faces that day of delivering were priceless. We couldn’t have done it without everyone’s hard work and generosity, and appreciate all of you so much. Thank you all for your support; without everyone, this wouldn’t be possible.” The post ends with an allusion to next year’s campaign.
In correspondence with the Times, Andrea wanted to emphasize that Ryan and Dakota are eager to give credit to the community for the success of this year’s campaign, noting that “they received some amazing donations.” After such a great act of giving, the pair has some time to rest before they buckle down and do it all again next year.
