A local boy took his concern for the homeless all the way to the mayor’s office last week.
Masen Scarnati, 7, put on his best suit jacket and bowtie to meet with mayor Ralph Leriger May 3 after learning about homelessness during a recent trip to the city. The thought that someone could live without a roof over their head, or a full stomach made him upset, so he decided to write a letter to the mayor to share some ideas about what could be done in Westlock to help the less fortunate.
It’s not Masen’s first experience in lending a helping hand either, he was actually in Edmonton that day to participate in the Hair Massacure and raised $800 in support of children living with life threatening diseases.
While Westlock may not have a homeless problem comparable to that of the City of Edmonton, there are still those who live below the poverty line and straddle the edge when trying to pay their rent and feed their families every month.
Masen would like to see a homeless shelter at some point in the future — in fact it’s on the top of his list. And while that may not be feasible in the near future, things like affordable housing are, said Leriger.
“More affordable housing like Westlock Place are really where the community needs to go. So I’ve been reading about what others are doing,” he said.
Also included on Masen’s list are organizing a fundraiser for the food bank and volunteering there to help stock shelves. He’s also interested in preparing “blessing bags” containing socks, bottled water, granola bars and other supplies to hand out to the less fortunate.
“He’s super motivated and determined to help the homeless however he can and I couldn’t be more proud,” said mom Tiffany.”He’s got his list that he’s going to be talking to the mayor about and we’ll see where this all goes ... I can’t wait to see what he does in 10 years.”
“When we get people thinking about their civic duty at that age it’s a good thing,” said Leriger.
