SARNIA, Ont. - As both a track and volleyball athlete in high school, Paige Vrolyk's options for university were nearly unlimited. She knew that the University of Toronto had won the Quigley Cup the year prior, and that both McMaster and York University were some of the highest ranked Kinesiology programs, her chosen area of study, in the world. She knew that whichever school she decided to attend after graduating from St. Patrick's Catholic High School in 2019 would be the right choice for her, and that she would find success in whichever city she decided to lay her head, at least for the next 4 years. The decision came down to one determining factor: community.

Community has always been a pillar in Vrolyk's personal foundation, and a single tour of McMaster University's campus, humming like a spring bird singing songs of inclusion, was enough to convince the student-athlete, who is now a proud member of the Marauder women's volleyball team, that McMaster would be her home away from home.
 
Community, like the one who rallied around Michael Oher in the biographical movie starring Sandra Bullock, The Blind Side, was what inspired Paige, and her two sisters, Sydney and Abby, was what inspired the sisters to create the 'Snacks for Summer' program.
 
Two summers ago, when the school year had come to an end, the Vrolyk sisters (Paige, Sydney and Abby), ever in tune with what is going on around them, realized something that many adults, and even politicians have failed to recognize. The end of school, for some, means the end of breakfast and lunch programs that so many of their peers rely on.

As both athletes and teenagers, the sisters knew that in order to focus, survive, and succeed, kids need to be able to eat. They knew that while they were always privileged enough to have food in their cupboards, some of their classmates were not so lucky. They knew that for some, the hunger could get so dire that it was all consuming, invading young minds whose worries should come from teenaged romance and television series, not from where they would get their next meal. They knew something had to be done.
  
The first leg of the Snacks for Summer program focused primarily on feeding hungry youth, but in summer of 2019, the program expanded into providing personal hygiene for both boys and girls. Paige is empathic to young girls who may be experiencing their period for the first time, and to girls who may need assistance with purchasing feminine hygiene products, for whatever reason. Included in each hygiene pack for girls is tampons, daytime and night-time sanitary pads, razors, creams, shampoo, conditioner, lotions, soaps, and any other items that are taken for granted by those with easy access to them. For boys, the care packages include soap, razors, shaving cream, toothpaste, toothbrushes, deodorant, and other items that teenaged boys need.

An initial goal of raising $5000.00 seemed like a pipe dream for the girls, who had promised themselves and each other that they would jump into the project with both feet.

"It's not fair to kids if they start depending on the program to have it taken away" says Paige.

Quickly, they learned, that through their efforts and the efforts of the community they had become such an integral part of, their donation goal had been met, matched, and multiplied. Snacks for Summer's modest $5000.00 dream was surpassed by a $50,000.00 reality. With tales of the program being told all across Ontario, film crews from Burlington traveled to Sarnia to shoot a video of the initiative, giving the girls and their project the media attention it deserved.
 
From there, the sisters were awarded Awards of Merit from Sarnia's MP, and a $300.00 donation from Sarnia's Chief of Police, Snacks for Summer's first and biggest supporter. When Noelle's Gift, a foundation in memoriam of elementary school teacher Noelle Paquette, heard about the Vrolyk sisters and their efforts, similar to that of Noelle's Gift, they offered to match $5000.00 raised by Paige, Abby, and Sydney with $5000.00 of their own.
 
Paige, Sydney, and Abby have thought of it all. They test and research every product that they include in a snack bag. "If we don't like it, we aren't going to give it away" says Paige.

The packages are not what you would find in a grocery store donation bin. There are not 5 cans of stewed tomatoes with nothing to accompany them. There is Cheese Whiz, high in calcium for growing kids, with crackers to spread it on. There are Goldfish, Nutri-Grain bars, peanut-free options, and of course, treats. Mr. Noodles, says Paige, are a hit, and those without access to hot water, a stove, or electricity, are able to bring items like Mr. Noodles to a Tim Horton's and use the restaurant's boiling water.
 
The project is spread out over a 6-week period, with pick-up locations alternating between St. Vincent De Paul, The Salvation Army, and The Good Shepherd on a bi-weekly basis. Currently, Snacks for Summer is located in Sarnia, but will be expanding this summer to areas surrounding the Sarnia area, such as Petrolia, Forest, and Wallaceburg. Seeing the poverty levels in Hamilton first-hand has inspired Paige to bring the project to Hamilton at a future date.
 
From a small room in the back of their church, Paige, Abby, Sydney, and Sydney's best friend, Morgan, package all of the snacks and hygiene products by themselves. Tediously, the girls assemble their care packages. They fundraise, the campaign, and they participate in public speaking to raise awareness for their cause. And they do so all under a cloak of anonymity. The reason for remaining anonymous brings the project full circle.
 
"They could be our peers" Paige says.
 
"They are our peers."
 
For more information about how you can get involved, visit the Snacks for Summer Facebook page.