Montreal families have one of the lowest per capita incomes in Canada. As a result, many families are struggling with the additional burden as single parents and experience various crisis situations: illness, loss of jobs, stress, debt or rents that could be as much as fifty percent of family income. It is clear why the children are often not ready to learn and find ways to hide their dilemma! Children are using our services at school, because for many of them there is little in the pantry at home.

The number of schools we serve have increased from 55 to 61. We also provided a variety of services to 11 learning centers and 5 group homes. Students requiring food on a daily basis have increased by six percent from 6343 during the previous school year to 6722 for the current school year. Hot meals exceeded 28,000. Other meals and snacks increased to more than 652,000 as compared to last year’s 563,000. Milk deliveries will surpass 130,000 and various fruit juices consumed have reached 300,000. We also provide cooking ingredients for the schools that host cooking classes for teenage mothers and alternative high school students.

We have taken steps to strengthen our services. Each day, dozen’s of Generations Foundation “angels” are serving breakfast, lunch and snacks to children in our communities. Volunteers, lunch supervisors, childcare workers and teachers, are assisting in the fight against hunger. We were able to provide this level of service by working closely together with our volunteers in each school and with the full support of teachers and principals. We also wish to compliment the students who participated in meal preparation and cleanup in many of the schools. This unique cooperation has created a strong measure of satisfaction for all those who participated as well we have developed a methodology for future growth with limited resources. In providing our services to learning centers, we partner with high school students who help younger students with their homework

Since Generations Foundation introduced food programs to schools and learning centers, the teachers and principals have observed an increase in the level of attention paid in class. They see higher academic results, a decrease in tardiness and absenteeism, as well as a decrease in violence and aggression. Police officers say that they do not have to frequent a school as often for behavior problems. From a hundred different sources, we know that investment in early childhood development is the best possible investment we can make. We are positive that the efforts to improve children’s lives will lead to a better, happier, healthier, and more productive society and country.

For the ninth summer in a row, we are providing needy children an opportunity to spend a couple of weeks at a camp in the country. Many of the children who spend their summertime on the hot city streets are given the opportunity to attend either Camp Amy Molson or Trails End Camp. The camp programs offer enriching experiences that help form an important bridge between the end of one school year and the beginning of the following school year. The diversified programs available at the camps are designed specifically to meet the needs and varied interests of the children. Many of the new skills and important friendships acquired during the summer helps children develop positive attitudes towards family and school.

For the younger children in group homes, we provide orthodontic services (this service is not covered by the Government).

Additionally, we provide tickets and transportion for outings including the circus, sporting events and activities that help schoolchildren expand their interests. We were assisted by generous sponsors in providing an opportunity for 175 children from four schools to skate at the Bell Center. For many it was the thrill of a lifetime. The excitement of skating on the ice where the Canadians play their games also included a “gourmet” lunch of hot dogs, chips and drinks.

Christmas is always a special time for Generations Foundation. Dozens of volunteers from various organizations visit our location to wrap and personally name donated new toys with tender loving care. We were able to deliver more than 4,000 gifts!

An important part of Generations Foundation's food programs for many years has been to provide milk and other dairy products to schoolchildren with the help of generous donors.  In 2007, the price of milk was 29.8 cents for a 200 ml. carton of milk.  This purchased 51,369 milk at 200 ml. each.  Each year in January the price increases for milk and other dairy products.  This year's price rose to 30.8 cents for a 200 ml. carton purchasing only 48,701 cartons for the students a difference of purchasing power in one year alone of 2,668 cartons!  We cannot thank enough our loyal sponsors who recognize the importance of this program."

Unlike many of the other organizations offering food to school children, we do not charge parents for the food we provide to their children.

In addition to the thousands of school meals and nutritious snacks, we delivered 150 crisis food baskets to the families of the schoolchildren we serve. Food baskets are given to families referred to us by the schools, police or by a social worker. This extraordinary situation is caused as a result of a lack of affordable low cost housing. Many families spent as much as 50% of their income on rent leaving little for other necessities such as food or clothing. The situation is greatly exasperated if someone in the family becomes ill or there is a need for clothing or some other emergency. Our food basket is intended to be a bridge to help a family over come a difficult situation.

Your personal support is vital since we are not receiving help from the Government. We have two major campaigns, one in November and one in May in addition to a number of fund-raising functions. I personally wish to seek your support for one or both of these campaigns. Please support us so that we may continue to provide our services crucial to a child’s well being.

We are confident that our message regarding child poverty is being received and understood in our community. Our relationship with key donors and our ability to identify essential needs of our clientele are the major factors that have made the Generations Foundation a recognized leader in hunger relief.

Overall we ended the year energized, focused and with a strong sense of motivation. Generations Foundation is confident that we can provide important services to our clientele even in the current difficult economic environment.

I heart fully thank you, our generous and committed donors, volunteers and board members for your dedication and support. With your involvement, we can continue to help thousands of children to face daily challenges against all odds.

Sincerely,

Adrian Bercovici
Executive Director