CORNWALL, Ontario – Wednesday, Feb. 28 is Pink Shirt Day, a day where those who are against bullying wear pink to school. That day also marks the launch of a new School Bus Poster campaign aimed at raising awareness of the Kids Help Phone.
Student Transportation of Eastern Ontario (STEO), the Upper Canada District School Board (UCDSB), the Catholic District School Board of Eastern Ontario (CDSBEO) and the Suicide Prevention Coalition of Champlain East are partnering together to put up 1,600 posters in 800 buses to reach 33,000 students.
The goal is to raise awareness for Kids Help Phone and reach kids who are struggling to let them know that there is help and people that they can talk to.
Angele D’Alessio of the Suicide Prevention Coalition of Champlain East said that the idea was formed after she was approached by a local bus driver who wanted to do more to help her passengers who might be struggling with depression or bullying.
The students at Bridgewood Public School in Cornwall helped to create a video to raise awareness for the poster campaign.
“We were talking about things we would talk to Kids Help Phone about,” said Grade 6 student Bianca Carnochan-Monette. “I said I was afraid to meet new people.”
The topics the students talked about in the video came from the most common issues that Kids Help Phone has to deal with.
The average age of a child using Kids Help Phone is 12 to 13-years-old.
“You should always get help when you need it,” said Grade 5 student Anthony MacDonald.
Steven Pasepathiesan a Grade 6 student at Bridgewood Public said that the Kids Help Phone was a good tool for kids who are too intimidated to talk face-to-face.
The Kids Help Phone can be reached via email, text message and by phone at 1-800-668-6868.
