Education assistant Elaine Tattrie first began teaching the gift of giving at Gibsons Elementary School in the early 2000s.
“I’m from a big family. Christmas was a big deal in our house, so that has spread down to me,” she told Coast Reporter, taking time on Dec. 3 from preparations for what would be the 18th iteration of a unique tradition at the elementary school.
It began with two boys, one in kindergarten and another in Grade 3. Their 18-year-old sister was looking after them.
Tattrie, who was born and raised in Gibsons, got a call from a friend who lived next door to the children. “She said, ‘Elaine, I don’t know what you can do but these boys are going to your school and there’s nothing for Christmas.’”
That call prompted her to supply the siblings with gifts, and over time it evolved into Family First, a grassroots program fuelled by volunteers and Tattrie’s enthusiasm that gives children a chance to provide for their families at Christmas.
The concept is simple and entirely community-driven – no sponsorships from businesses, no government grants.
Instead Tattrie “hits the sales” at Boxing Day. She takes advantage of yard sales in the summer. And through her network of friends and family collects gently used items that might otherwise go to consignment stores. The Parent Advisory Council and Community School provide support. People call and ask what’s needed. They chip in gift cards. Almost everything is brand new.
Like Santa Claus, she works from a list. Sitting down with principal Deborah Luporini, they go through each class, determining which families may benefit from extra support.
Then, over a few days in early December, items are organized and displayed at the school. Students from kindergarten to Grade 7 peruse tables brimming with toys, books, kitchenware, skincare products, Christmas decorations – all destined to be gifts for parents, caregivers and siblings. “They come and pick it out, they get to wrap it. However it gets home it gets home, in whichever state or form it’s wrapped in” said Tattrie, laughing.
This year Tattrie estimates 90 children will participate and about 16 families tied to the school will benefit.
Over the years, the idea has spread to a couple of nearby schools, too. Tattrie also makes sure other essentials – trees, Christmas lights – are provided if needed.
“There is some poverty. We don’t live in the richest part of the earth,” said Tattrie. But the program doesn’t just target children facing extreme circumstances. It’s also meant to help families that could simply use extra support, such as single parents, or families new to the Sunshine Coast.
The approach is intended to ensure families feel connected to the school, principal Luporini told Coast Reporter. It’s also become a form of reciprocal giving. “Over the years we have had the same family on both sides of the program, contributing to Family First and benefiting from Family First,” she said.
And once the gifts are wrapped and sent home and tables packed up, there’s still work to do. That’s when “we concentrate on the families as a whole family,” said Tattrie. She ensures they receive a turkey and box of oranges. Student backpacks are filled with food, holiday cookies, candy canes and chocolates – a feat this year she admits will be harder because of COVID-19, “but we’re going to do something.”
Anchored to the community, Tattrie has seen the giving come full circle. The two boys that started the tradition visited her recently. They’re happy and healthy. “They’re all grown up – got beards and everything!”
While the program has evolved beyond strictly helping those dealing with poverty, the pandemic has reinforced some things don’t change.
“The hardship is really there,” said Tattrie, who’s seen it this year in the students without lunches, in the toes popping out of running shoes, the kids without boots. “That extra pair of shoes is just that little extra bit of money that people don’t have right now.”
Whoever benefits from the program, though, she says the original driving lesson hasn’t changed, either. “That is my bottom line. It’s all about giving and teaching children how to give.”
