North Okanagan family fundraises to send son, support worker on school trip – Okanagan

Michael Reynolds is raising his voice in hopes of raising funds for the opportunity to travel to London, England with his classmates to explore the rich theatre history of the city.

The Grade 10 student at Pleasant Valley Secondary School has ambitious dreams for his future.

“I want to pursue Disney movies, I want to do more, I want to sing and dance, I love dancing, I love dancing and singing,” said Michael.

However, the opportunity for this aspiring performer comes with a hefty price tag. Michael’s family needs to cover over $5,000 for his trip, which includes airfare, accommodation, theatre performances, tours, and more. Additionally, they are required to fund a support worker to accompany Michael on the trip due to his rare condition, panhypopituitarism.

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“He was born without a pituitary gland, so his whole life he has needed daily medication to keep him alive,” said Madison Reynolds, Michael’s mother.

“He gets injections of growth hormone to grow, he also is autistic and he is visually impaired so they are all crossed over together.”

The trip is organized by a teacher at School District 83 in coordination with a tour group called EF Educational Tours. While the tour company provided a discount, the Reynolds Family still needs to raise over $3,000 quickly to ensure their travel arrangements can be finalized. Therefore, the family is hosting multiple fundraisers.

“We live in a country where everyone should feel supported. We talk a lot about that inclusion and support but I don’t see it happening the way that it’s talked about,” said Reynolds.

No one from the school district was available to answer our questions.

Tamara Taggart, an advocate for children with diverse abilities, believes that families should not be solely responsible for fundraising.

“Can anyone tell me that the school district or the Ministry of Education doesn’t have enough money to pay for a support worker to assist a student on a trip? It’s ridiculous,” said Taggart.

“We know that the Ministry of Education allocates hundreds of millions of dollars every year in taxpayer dollars to all the school districts in British Columbia. There’s no accountability for where that money goes or how it is spent.”

In the lead-up to the trip, the family has set up a payment plan for Michael’s expenses while organizing a bottle drive, online fundraiser, and selling tickets to a New Year’s Eve party at Boulevard Coffee in Armstrong.

For more details about Michael’s journey, visit www.account.eftours.ca

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