The folks at the Kids Help Phone have come to the realization that their posters, featuring images of lonely non-Native kids in city parks, couldn’t possibly appeal to Native kids in communities, like Attawapiskat, Ontario where there isn’t even a playground.
This is why the private and confidential kids help-line embarked on a year-long fact-finding mission to examine the needs of children in northern Ontario communities so that they could ensure that kids in Ontario’s north have that extra support when they need it.
With a $58,000 grant from Ontario’s Ministry of Health Promotion and Sport to travel to Moose Factory, Serpent River, Thunder Bay and Kettle and Stony Point to learn about Aboriginal culture, the organization was able to find out more about the needs of kids in these communities so that campaigns can appeal to suicidal youth from these areas.
Now, the Kids Help Phone, partnered with the Native Canadian Centre, has a new ad campaign and nine new campaign posters that are all inspired by First Nations youth.
“As an organization, we knew we could do more,” said Kristen Buckley, the Kids Help Phone Knowledge Coordinator who leads the project.
Contact Kids Help Phone at 1-800-668-6868.