High school kids destigmatize homelessness, one hot potato at a time
Credit to Author: Cheryl Chan| Date: Sun, 18 Aug 2019 21:35:33 +0000
At just 15 years old, Alice Ko wanted to make a difference in Vancouver’s enduring homeless problem.
She joined the Hot Potato Initiative, a fledging group from the Burnaby Mountain Secondary that prepares and distributes hot baked potatoes to people in need in the Downtown Eastside.
Her first hot-potato run was an eye-opening experience for the then-Grade 10 student.
“I’m sometimes guilty of putting that stigma, thinking people who are homeless are there because they are on drugs or they drink or they’re doing something not so good,” she said. “But over time, when you get to know them, you learn they have a unique story.”
Three years later, the Hot Potato Initiative has grown from 15 members to 500 students from about 20 schools across the Lower Mainland.
Burnaby students, from left, Miranda Andersen, Elyse Wong, Denise Wong and Emily Wong on a hot-potato run in January 2018.
To date, volunteers have handed out about 2,000 hot potatoes, sparking countless interactions and conversations, and earning them the nickname “the potato people” on the street.
The initiative is named “hot potato” as a reminder people shouldn’t stand by while homelessness is being tossed around like the proverbial hot potato, but also because the nutritious tuber was their way in to engage with marginalized groups.
Every other weekend during the school year volunteers head to the DTES, sacks of russet potatoes in tow.
They bake them in batches in ovens at neighbourhood houses, slice them and add green onions, sour cream and cheese. Each potato is wrapped in foil, affixed with a short message, then put in bags to be handed out.
Volunteers prepare and hand out baked potatoes in the Downtown Eastside in 2018.
In the winter, the group switches from potatoes to care packages containing items like toothbrushes, socks, mittens and hats.
The group is aware of the limitations of addressing a seemingly intractable problem with a humble spud. Their goal, said Ko, is to start a dialogue to eliminate the stigma around homelessness and rally youth to action.
“It’s important we are not focusing on short-term hunger — a lot of community groups already do this,” said Ko. “Our major focus is to get the dialogue going.”
The initiative has been putting up photos of willing homeless participants on its website and Facebook page telling snippets of stories about their lives that they hope would make people see them as individuals.
Recently, it also started Hot Potato Talks, a video series featuring homeless people and people who work in shelters and social-service agencies.
It also holds a speaker series to educate members on some of the underlying factors contributing to homelessness in the city.
According to Vancouver’s 2019 homeless count, 2,223 people identified as homeless — up two per cent from 2018, despite the construction of supportive housing and temporary modular homes.
Ko, who just graduated from Burnaby Central and will attend the University of B.C. in the fall, said the founders have already passed the torch to high school students. She plans to stay on as a member of the board of directors.
The program gets funding from various fundraisers held by each school chapter. It has also received community grants, including a $2,500 Coast Capital Savings grant last year awarded to youth-based community initiatives.
“Being able to give back to my own community is very rewarding,” Ko said. “And working with other students who are so passionate and who amaze me with their dedication, that’s what draws me to this project.”