The Big Little Run: Supporting Esprit Daycare

As a keen runner, father, and someone who loves the opportunity to host fun events that bring the community together to raise money for good causes, I’m organizing The Big Little Run to support my son’s daycare, Esprit, and advocate for accessible, affordable childcare on the Coast.

The Big Little Run: April 25th - 26th

We’re inviting the community to come together, get active, and see how many laps of the Gibsons’ 400m track we can complete in 24 hours. We’ll have kids from daycare to high school, parents, run clubs, businesses, and more, all joining in to walk, run, and watch as the laps add up.

In addition, a small group of ultra runners, including Tom, will run for the full 24 hours straight, each aiming to hit 200km. 

The Why: Advocating for Affordable Childcare

Esprit is the longest-serving childcare facility on the Sunshine Coast, providing much-needed loving care to hundreds of children for more than 30 years. However, it is currently threatened by chronic underfunding from the government. 

As part of the 10-a-day program, Esprit currently provides affordable childcare to its families, but the current funding model has meant that it has been losing money month after month. As parents of Esprit kids, the other parents and I have worked together to lobby local government to provide additional funding, organized fundraisers, and voluntarily donated extra funds each month to keep the daycare afloat. 

The problem is bigger than Esprit though. Just last year, both YMCA childcare facilities locally were forced to close their doors due to a lack of funding from this program, leaving ~60 families without childcare. 

So far, Esprit has survived. The daycare had an emergency fund which kept the doors open, and through fundraising and parent advocacy, Esprit recently managed to secure additional funding from the government for the next year. However, the deficit Esprit faced has meant that essential maintenance work has been put on hold, and the daycare requires much-needed improvements. 

This event aims to generate community support and immediate government action to support daycare facilities like Esprit across the province and the rest of the country. The funds raised will go directly back to Esprit to help them provide improvements to the facility, including a new playground.

To support our cause, sign up and donate at our event page: https://www.zeffy.com/en-CA/ticketing/the-big-little-run