Michelle Liu: Ready-made meals for healthcare workers

Michelle Liu provides ready-made meals for healthcare workers

How many people worked with you on your project?

We have approximately 5 to 6 team leaders from different schools across British Columbia. Each team consists of three or four members, and their duties include organizing events in each school. Together, we are able to support healthcare workers through monthly lunch deliveries.

How many hours did you spend on this initiative?

I spent at least 10 hours per month planning activities, scheduling and attending meetings, and delivering hot lunches to hospitals.

What was the goal of your project? Do you feel you achieved what you set out to do?

This project was intended to provide a support service for local health care workers. The healthcare industry has been focused upon dealing with COVID-19, and they have continued to operate despite interruptions to other ancillary services. Inspired by their professionalism and dedication to their work, I feel that I have achieved my goal through delivering hot lunches, the healthcare workers have recognized that they are not fighting the virus alone.

How many people were directly impacted by your project? What was their response to your initiative?

The snacks and lunches were received by a care centre of almost 100 healthcare workers. Upon receiving our delivery, the healthcare workers were delighted, commenting to us that “we need more young people like this”. Across the lower mainland of British Columbia, high school students from Crofton House School, Collingwood School, Rockridge Secondary, Point Grey Secondary, and Moscrop Secondary directly worked with me and developed their leadership and communication skills through participating in the initiative. As our social media platform and official website (mercicharity.com) continue to grow, the number of people impacted by my project continues to increase.

How did the community receive your project?

The food drive was directly delivered to hospitals and healthcare centres. The health care workers were grateful for the hot lunches, and expressed the desire to see similar initiatives from local youth in the future.

What did you learn as you planned your project? Were there any changes you did not plan for? How did you adapt to these changes?

As I planned my project, I further developed my communication and organizational skills. I needed to coordinate with both my peers – many of whom I had not known beforehand – and other groups such as the staff at the heal care facility. One of the changes that I did not plan for was the busy schedule of hospitals. The initial hospital I contacted was not available on the set date, so I had to adapt to this situation by contacting other care centres and hospitals.

What went well with your project?

I successfully achieved my goal of showing the healthcare workers our appreciation while providing a useful and valuable service, especially in light of similar services being restricted due to pandemic regulations. In addition, I was able to indirectly spread awareness in my community of the need to support local healthcare workers.

If you could do things differently, what would you do? What were the opportunities for learning you experienced?

My project overall went very smoothly. If I were to improve my initiative, it would be further communicating with the hospitals to see if they have other needs such as medical equipment or supplies that we might acquire.

Do you have any suggestion or advice you would like us to share with other youth who are accessing the grant program?

Michelle Liu, Passion to Purpose Grantee