About CPAN

Poverty Reduction

We believe that no one should live in poverty, especially children. Because of this, we are constantly advocating for its elimination. CPAN realizes that poverty elimination will not happen overnight. Our belief, along with many others fighting poverty, is that a poverty reduction strategy, with targets and timetables, is the first crucial and essential step.

In June 2008, during the provincial poverty consultations, CPAN worked vigorously to ensure that Renfrew County low income residents were able to not only voice their concerns, but also play an active part during these discussions.

CPAN submitted a report to The Ontario Poverty Reduction committee. Click here to download the report: PDF

In December 2008, the province of Ontario announced a Poverty Reduction Strategy to reduce child poverty by 25% in 5 years. The province also committed to fostering support to low income families by substantially increasing the Ontario Child Benefit, overhauling the social assistance system, and investing in education and communities.

CPAN will be aggressively monitoring progress on poverty reduction, and promises to continue to work with the government in hopes to eventually eliminate all child and family poverty in Renfrew County.

For more information on the strategy and community response, please visit http://www.growingstronger.ca. and http://www.spno.ca.

Why CPAN was founded

In 2000, the Renfrew County Child Poverty Report Card was released and a number of agencies hosted several community meetings to inform the public on the status of child poverty in Renfrew County. At the same time, these agencies became more aware of the depth of child poverty in their own communities and felt that it needed to be dealt with at more than a case by case level. As a result, the Child Poverty Action Network (CPAN) was born with the mandate to eliminate the effects of child poverty and to do so in a manner that was empowering and inclusive. We purposely wanted to focus on the word ACTION so we did not have a group that only talked about child poverty, but rather would have activities and actions that did something about it.

Since its inception the organization has been true to its roots. There have been many activities and actions and these continue to expand and be refined as we move forward and find more and more agencies and individuals who want to be a part of the solution. Our membership is increasing, currently membership stands at over 250 individuals, with 57 agencies and organizations that are spread throughout Renfrew County, Ontario, and Canada.

Who we are

CPAN is a grassroots network. Our membership consists of members from a wide range of social, economic, and geographic areas. There are several agencies and organizations that are members and support CPAN throughout the year (see membership list). CPAN members contribute in many ways. There are no costs to become a CPAN member - the only requirement is the belief that child poverty has to be eliminated. Each member is a resource to us; some members donate money, some donate their time in various ways, such as participating in meetings, becoming presenters and/or guest speakers, sitting on sub-committees, or helping with fundraising. Some members give ideas, provide important contacts and resources, and others spread the word to raise awareness.

CPAN is truly a diverse network. Our members range in age and profession and come from a variety of social and economical backgrounds, but all share a common goal in eliminating child poverty.

Where we are located

CPAN covers all of Renfrew County. Our office is located at:

We can be reached at:
Tel: 613-735-2374 ext. 250 or Toll free: 1-800-465-1870 ext. 250
Fax: 613-735-2378
E-mail: cpan@phoenixctr.com

What we do

CPAN is involved with a number of activities related to the elimination of child poverty and minimizing the effect that poverty has on children living in Renfrew County.  These activities fall under three categories; practical assistance, advocacy, and education.

Practical Assistance

We coordinate various programs, such as:

• Harmony for Renfrew County

  Youth aged 12-18 receive music lessons however, instead of paying monetary fees they are required to "pay-it-forward" through volunteerism back to the community.
  » learn more

• Backpack Plus

  supplies back-to-school items such as backpacks, school supplies, and one pair of shoes.
  » learn more

• Operation Snowsuit

  supplies snowsuits and boots for those in need. » learn more

• Activity Funding

  helps fund children with the registration for extracurricular activities. Jumpstart (Canadian Tire) allow CPAN to administer funding from their Pembroke and Renfrew locations.

All these programs are aimed at improving the lives of children living in poverty by allowing every child to feel equal to their peers, more socially included, and less stigmatized. We currently have sub-committees who focus their attention on specific areas such as the Operation Snowsuit Committee and Social Inclusion committee.

Advocacy

CPAN advocates for low income families who have children and are having financial difficulties. Advocacy happens in a number of ways;

• Having a positive influence on public policy related to issues effecting poverty at the municipal, provincial and federal levels.
• Bringing to attention both individual issues or broader community issues, to agencies and organization connected to those experiencing poverty.
• Raising awareness of the fact that child poverty exists here in Canada, in Ontario, and more locally Renfrew County.
  

Members work together to help reduce the stigma of living in poverty. They do this by educating others about barriers that low income families face, and work toward dispelling the myths of poverty.

Education

Sometimes people are judgmental of those who live in poverty. CPAN is often invited to be guest speakers and/or to present to many different groups whose ages, gender, and social backgrounds differ. Our tools include: Power Point presentations, information sheets/brochures and fun and educational games.

Two of our games at present are:

• Poverty Jeopardy

  Based on the popular TV show, Poverty Jeopardy is a trivia game. The trivia relates to poverty and is a useful learning tool as well as being fun to play. This game can be played by groups or individuals, is enjoyed by all age groups and requires about one hour to play.

• The Poverty Survival Game

  This board game is like Monopoly in reverse. Each time around the board represents one month (one week per side). The objective is to survive three months! This can be more difficult and frustrating than most people could predict. Every player takes on the identity of a character in the game. These characters are all based on real people in Renfrew County. Situations and rules of the game are also based on the reality of living in poverty and, in most cases, players are allowed (as in life) to make choices, but with each choice there are consequences. The Poverty Survival Game lets the players walk a mile in their shoes, and shows the reality of living in poverty and the tough choices some families face on daily, weekly, and monthly basis.
  
  Many of us often have safety nets (such as through credit) and when something goes wrong (car breaks down) we use credit and are able to pay for it later. Those who live in poverty often do not have good credit and are, therefore, are not able to obtain credit (loan, credit card, line of credit) and are left without a safety net when emergency situations do arise. One emergency situation is all that it can take to put some families in crisis. Times of crisis can lead people to lose their reasoning and make them more likely to use poor judgment. Families living in poverty do not have the luxury of making financial mistakes; one small mistake could be devastating.
  
  The Poverty Survival Game brings reality to Poverty!