Our programs continuously impact the ever-changing landscapes of philanthropy by writing a chapter into its foundation via "Small Moments of Joy" - an initiative created in 2014. Small Moments of Joy is a program focused on local children battling life threatening or chronic illness. The program grants "wishes" for these children - with the goal of allowing them to forget their illness or upcoming / ongoing treatments or surgeries, and for a moment or two, focus on a moment of joy. Our goal is to aid in the recovery process by providing a positive and joyful experience for the child and his or her family, but with a focus on the young person. Harboured in this program is the belief that positivity aids in the recover and healing process. Rachel's Kids first Small Moment was the purchase of a pool for a local boy, Joel Fast, who is living with developmental delays, as a result of cancer treatments. Since then we've helped spread some joy to well over 50 kids in SD&G and surrounding area. If you or someone you know and love could benefit from our "Small Moments of Joy" program, please complete the application form below. The application will be presented to our Board of Directors who will then select a family to offer some financial assistance based on the need. Families will be contacted should they be selected.

Small Moments of Joy Application

In 2014, Rachel' s Kids launched the Helping Hands Program - an off shoot of Small Moments of Joy. There were many families applying for Small Moment from families of very young children suffering from serious illness but being so little, they couldn't communicate their interests or the things they wished for through the "Small Moments of Joy" initiative. This is when we had decided to branch out with an additional program to better help our tiny little locals and their families through Helping Hands. We were quick to realize that the stress, travel and time to take these young children to treatment were placing huge financial burdens on young families. In developing Helping Hands, we felt that we could assist with specific situations such as these and through this program we wanted to contribute by giving out gas cards, food cards, prepaid cards to better support these families to cope with basic living expenses while their children were undergoing treatment. (The children all got a little something too). If you or someone you know and love could benefit from our "Helping Hands" program, please complete the application form below. The application will be presented to our Board of Directors who will then select a family to offer some financial assistance based on the need. Families will be contacted should they be selected.

Helping Hands Application Form

Rachel's Kids hosted a Teddy Bear Giveaway at the beginning of December. They offered a little Christmas love to children in our community by gifting those in need with a 4ft bear and a $100 Kids Korner gift card. Businesses in the community sponsored the bears to be given away and families submitted applications for a child they believe needed a little extra support at Christmas. Every school in S.D.&G. and Akwesasne also had a say on who would receive a bear. One child from each school was tasked to be Santa's Helper and got to choose a student in need to then personally deliver the bear.

At 2pm on December 7th, the lucky ticket was chosen. Rachel’s Kids, a local children’s charity, hosted a car raffle for a brand new 2020 Hyundai Elantra as their most recent fundraiser. Along with a brand-new car, a $1000 gas card donated by Seaway Hyundai and $500 cash were up for grabs. Neil Coulter was the lucky winner of the brand new Elantra. Mandee-Leigh Charron walked away with the gas card and Janet Aloysius took home the cash.

On December 6th, Rachel’s Kids, a local children’s charity, hauled three carloads of non-perishable food items to St. Vincent de Paul in support of their annual Stuff the Studio food drive. They were able to donate just over 1400lbs of food this year which added to their whopping total of 13 000lbs of food donated over 7 years.

Dr. Rachel Navaneelan is not only recognized for her philanthropic régime but also for her increasingly successful Annual Garden Party! As mentioned on our "Home Page", Dr. Navaneelan initially began hosting this intimate event for friends, family, clients and colleagues in her own backyard in order to raise funds for the post tsunami victims of Sri Lanka which struck in December 2004. Since then, this progressive and efficacious event has quadrupled in attendance as well as in fundraising efforts wherein turn, outgrew her own yard and has now become Rachel's Kids most anticipated event of the year at various prestigious venues!

Over the last 14 years, Dr. Rachel Navaneelan's signature event has boasted well over a million dollars in fundraising efforts allowing her to invest in building schools abroad, providing clothing, shoes, education, bicycles, food, water filtration devices etc. while increasing the quality of life for children and families from Sri Lanka. With the rise in donations over the course of the years, Dr. Rachel continues to be diligent and passionate in providing an array of local programs and financial support to families in need in SD&G and surrounding areas as well as overseas. Should you want to sponsor this event or donate an item for our live and silent auction please call us at 613-933-3946 or visit us at the House of Hope, 850 Boundary Road. Over 300 tickets are sold each year and they are limited so be sure to purchase your early bird tickets in the spring.

Welcome to the most Canadian beer festival in all of Eastern Ontario! (well at least we think so...) Hosted by Rachel's Kids at the Cornwall Civic Complex, nestled in the heart of the United Counties of Stormont, Dundas and Glengarry, the Suds & Sap Festival was established to give beer connoisseurs the opportunity to sample beer from a number of Ontario's best breweries, wineries and distilleries in a cozy Canadian atmosphere. Come down for the afternoon or spend the evening indulging in maple cotton candy and comfort food from gourmet food vendors. Sounds amazing EH?!

Best of all, 100% of every dollar raised will go towards supporting a local not for profit children’s charity, Rachel’s Kids, and their programs.

Needless to say, our festival is going to be every Canadians dream and you would be crazy to miss out on it.

TICKET INFO;

• Pale Ale Keeners $55 (December 14 - January 18)
• Brewskie Connoisseurs $60 (January 18 - February 22)
• Last Minute Lagger Lovers $70 (February 22 - February 29)

**All include tasting cup and all alcohol samples.
Excluded are the maple products and food vendors.
Must be of legal drinking age to attend the Suds & Sap Festival

CLICK HERE TO BUY TICKETS ONLINE

For more information, visit our Suds & Sap FACEBOOK Page

Imagine a 1000 lb. pumpkin being towed up by a crane at approximately 100 feet in the air and dropped in the middle of a huge parking lot amongst hundreds of spectators! This initiative is quite entertaining so many people look forward to this event. The idea is to purchase one or several ping pong balls all numerically identified from 001 up to 2000! You are now assigned specific balls associated to your name. On the day of the Pumpkin Drop, we barricade a large area in a parking lot, stuff our very large pumpkin with the ping pong balls, crane it up and let her drop! The ball closest to the "X" target wins $1,000. Although this event takes place in October every year, the proceeds from this fundraiser helps support our local programs all year long. Be sure to follow us on Facebook and twitter to find out when you can start purchasing your ticket for the Drop. It's something you do not want to miss.

Read more: https://www.cornwallseawaynews.com/community/2017/10/28/festive-fun-at-pumpkin-drop.html https://www.facebook.com/RachelskidsDF/videos/1802967079717760/

100 Souls with Purpose is an initiative we launched in early 2018. This event is held four times a year where 100 members of our community come together for a night of hors d'oeuvres, drinks and socializing with friends and pillars in the community at some of our prestige venues in Cornwall. During these quarterly meetings, we take this opportunity to showcase some of our accomplishments as well as invite special guest speakers to tell their story on how Rachel's Kids has made a difference in their lives. Should you be interested in becoming a 100 Soul with a Purpose member, email mel@rachelskids.com or call Rachel's Kids House of Hope at 613-933-3946 to register.  

100 SOULS WITH A PURPOSE – EVENT

Rachel’s Kids Education Sponsorship Program connects Canadians with children in Sri Lanka.

In Sri Lanka, as in many developing countries, regular school instruction is often inadequate to pass national exams and to gain admission to higher education. These classes, however, can be very costly and are not within reach for many families. Every parent wants to see their child reach their educational goals. Even in Canada we are aware of how expensive this can be. By sponsoring a child we are able to assist some of these children to achieve some form of vocational training or receive higher education, which we at Rachel’s Kids believe is the way out of poverty.

For a minimum donation of $75.00 you can assist a student in the Mount Carmel Parish.  Currently there are 165 students at this school.  Your donation can be made using the Donate Button on our home page or by contacting us at helpingkids@rachelskids.com