CBC Metro Morning – Andy Barrie

Audio at a Glance

School: Forest Hill Public School
School Board: Toronto District School Board
Grade: 8
Student: Zach Starkman

Zack, Grade 6 student:
I decided to collect toys for Sick Kids Hospital when a school project came up and I had to think of a cause or charity that was meaningful to me.

Andy Barrie, CBC Metro Morning:
You have a large stuffed doll on your lap. What’s that about?

Zack, Grade 6 student:
The doll, his name is actually NOBODY. Throughout this project students have been presenting their project and putting a representation on him like someone put paws on it because she thought declawing cats wasn’t a good idea.

Andy Barrie:
You’re turning a NOBODY into a SOMEBODY.

Zack, Grade 6 student:
We’re turning NOBODY into a SOMEBODY.

Andy Barrie:
Tell us a little something about spending time in the hospital and what you saw as a problem that needed solving.

Zack, Grade 6 student:
Usually I have to stay for 5 hours and sometimes if I’m really sick I have to stay overnight. A lot of time kids are there for a long time and watching tv all day isn’t that fun after the first day.

Andy Barrie:
What kind of things do they have to distract you now?

Zack, Grade 6 student:
They have markers and crayons and games in each ward, movies … but no stuffed animals. And that’s really what my project is about. I really wanted to give a comfort thing to the hospital, for children who have to go through a transplant or a surgery or just if they’re there alone. A lot of times a child who needs a transplant comes down from Alberta or somewhere and their parents have to go back because they have to work or they’re a single parent.

Andy Barrie:
How are you raising the money to do this?

Zack, Grade 6 student:
I’m having a walk-a-thon.

Andy Barrie:
How much money do you expect to raise?

Zack, Grade 6 student:
I’ve raised over $550 so far.

Andy Barrie:
Wow. From what I understand, Sick Kids Hospital is going to let you go out and choose the stuff that the kids will most want. This will be quite a shopping trip!

Zack, Grade 6 student:
The first thing I want to get for each ward is a giant stuffed bear. A big stuffed bear.

Andy Barrie:
You’ve devoted a lot of time to this.

Zack, Grade 6 student:
I’ve been getting a lot of support from my teachers and classmates and friends and family.

Andy Barrie:
Zack is the founder of Zack’s Comfort Walk.