5 Pillars of Support

Variety – the Children’s Charity of BC provides direct assistance to children in BC through a wide spectrum of individual grants.

Adaptive & Mobility Equipment

Variety is committed to ensuring children and their families have the freedom to go outside, be mobile and participate in their communities by funding essential medical supplies and mobility equipment such as hearing aids, specialty enclosure beds, manual & power wheelchairs, adaptive trikes, walkers and custom orthotics to name a few.

Mental Wellness

Kids with disabilities and complex health needs are often suffering from anxiety, depression and low self-esteem but since the pandemic, there has been a significant rise in the number of ALL kids who are struggling with their mental well-being. Variety is here to support kids with clinical counselling to offer them support and to help them work through their mental health challenges.

Private Assessments

There are children in BC who are currently waiting to receive an autism or psychoeducational assessment through the public system. With the wait often being years, these kids are missing out on crucial early intervention and are struggling to progress both at home and at school. Variety is the only organization stepping in and helping these families by providing funding to access the private system so kids can be tested within months instead of years and can begin accessing the support they so desperately need.

Specialized Therapies

Variety funds a broad range of therapies that help a child learn to communicate (speech & language therapy), rebuild or strengthen muscles (physiotherapy) and learn how to master everyday tasks (occupational therapy) but sometimes kids need an “out of the box” treatment or therapy. That’s why we have also begun funding equine therapy and music therapy as often animals and music can be a non-traditional approach that is effective in reaching a child and allowing them to open up or develop cognitive, motor & social skills.

Tuition & Tutoring

Variety offers additional educational support for kids by funding one-on-one tutoring and tuition bursaries to attend a specialized school. Learning in an environment where children can succeed carries over into their social, emotional and physical health.