Sébastien Tellier, a Grade 12 student at école secondaire Villa Française des Jeunes or VFJ as it is known in Elliot Lake, took a presentation on the sex trade to heart after hearing it.
It was a presentation by sex trade survivor Lioana Skyd Grandmon that touched Tellier so much he decided he had to do something to better his community.
That spark was fuelled in part by a leadership course which calls on students to organize an event or an initiative within the school to better the community. During Grandmond’s presentation, she talked about her experiences of living on the streets in southern Ontario and being bought and sold to men from the age of 13 before breaking free when she turned 17.
“Her story made me feel shocked and angry at the same time,” Tellier said in an interview today.
When his teacher Dominique Jean, “talked about a special fundraising project for my leadership class I knew I wanted to help.”
“My idea was to ask the students of l’école publique des Villageois to bring new, unused hygiene products to the school to donate to Victim Services Algoma,” he said. “When survivors arrived for help, many have nothing but the clothes on their backs and something as simple as a hot shower and being able to clean themselves up can make a difference in a person’s day.”
Tellier’s appeal for donations obviously struck a chord with the student population who donated 199 items including shampoo and toothpaste and in addition to cash donations of $216. Those donations were picked up at the school today by members of Victim Services Algoma.
“We are very proud of him,” his teacher stated.
It’s estimated about 50 sex trade survivors live in the Algoma District and are assisted by Victim Services.