'This is an act of love': Parker's Promise kits offer support for parents, caregivers

The items in each Parker’s Promise kit are relatively common: a fidget, a lip chap, a tea bag, a pen and journal, and a card that explains how a person can use these things in a grounding exercise.

This was done very intentionally by creator Shalyn Wilson, who wanted to make sure the items in the kit could be easily and relatively inexpensively replenished for continual use.

“You can recreate that grounding exercise over and over and over again,” she said.

Possibly the most important item in the kit is the magnet with a QR code, which connects users to a website with a wide variety of resources for parents or caregivers and their children.

Shalyn curates this online resource, breaking the different websites down into simple categories to make it easier for parents to navigate when they’re stressed and/ or have little time and bandwidth to focus on this.

“When we’re in crisis, we don’t necessarily know what we need,”

Shalyn said.

She also tries to make sure that the resources listed are either free or available for a nominal fee, to make sure cost isn’t a barrier for access.

“There’s nothing super extravagant about (the hub), and it’s not super overwhelming to look at – which I find sometimes websites can be. I go on once a month to update the events and make sure that the links are still functioning,” Shalyn said.

She wants to make it as easy as possible for parents to seek out support.

“Let's say I'm already at a 10 (stress level). That's the moment that I want to reach out for something. That's also the moment that I'm going to type into Google or I'm going to reach out to somebody. I'm going to click on the first resource I find. If that link is dead, if it has 23 steps for registration, if they're closed, whatever hurdle is in the way, I'm done; I'm not interested anymore, I'm out,” Shalyn said. That’s why maintaining the website is such an important factor.

The kits have a heartbreaking origin; they’re an initiative that came out of Parker’s Project, which was started in 2017.

In July 2005, police were called to Dufferin Avenue and Parkside Drive after a woman walking her dog found a newborn’s body. He was named Baby Parker, and the investigation into his death was ongoing.

In February 2026, police arrested a 39-year-old woman and charged her with indignity to a body and concealing the body of a child.

At the time, Shalyn was interviewed for an article in the Brantford Expositor; she called for compassion and support for parents and caregivers.

“So often, I see people reaching out for practical or emotional support on social media and they end up feeling judged. When that happens, they start feeling overwhelmed, isolated and that’s when the pressure builds and a crisis happens,”

the article quoted her saying.

That’s unfortunately been happening for a long time.

In the immediate wake of Baby Parker being found, community members came together to conduct surveys of young parents in the area, to find what supports were working and where there was still need.

“They used that information to try to fill the gaps,” Shalyn said.

Out of those efforts came Parker’s Project, and later Margot’s Place.

Shalyn joined Parker’s Project around 2018; over time, attendance at meetings and events gradually dropped off, but she still wanted to do what she could to make a difference.

She applied for a grant through the Community Changemakers’ program, which is run through a partnership between the City of Brantford and Wilfrid Laurier University StartUp Lab Brantford, and with the money, made the first batch of the kits.

Shalyn partners with different community organizations to distribute the kits; since the organizations have established relationships with the recipients, the hope is that the kits will be seen more as a tool, rather than a ‘swag bag.’

Lansdowne Children’s Centre is one of the community organizations Shalyn has partnered with. 

Ultimately, Shalyn wants every person who receives a kit to know that the message behind it, from her and the organization distributing it, is,

“This is an act of love. I want you to take care of yourself, and I want you to know that these resources are available.”