Local Tim Hortons owners Ed Zaparaniuk and Cheryl Sander reached thousands with their smile cookie campaign raising money for the Hospice this year.
Thanks to fellow business owner Malcolm Jenkins, that donation is going even further.
Zaparaniuk, Jenkins and Rose Garden Hospice board members met at the site of the future project Wednesday where Jenkins presented the hospice with a cheque for $18,000, matching the amount raised by this year’s fundraiser.
With Zaparaniuk and Sander also contributing $50,000 of their own in matching funds for each dollar raised by the three-year campaign, it’s making a significant dent in the fundraising efforts, which have passed the halfway mark.
“The donation today is to match the very generous donation from Ed (Zaparaniuk) from Tim Horton’s very best donuts in the world,” Jenkins, who owns the local Canadian Tire, said.
“He raised $18,000 by selling cookies. We pledged over five years to help the hospice, and we said we’d to it by matching things to help raise the profile. That’s why we’re here now, so people know about it. We’re up over halfway now thanks to guys like Ed.”
Jenkins said fundraisers like the Smile Cookies and like his own Toffifee fundraising campaign that encourages community participation help raise the profile of the project much more than a single donation would
The commitment made by Zaparaniuk and Sander means the funds from the smile cookie campaigns for the next two years will also flow to the hospice.
“Something like this reaches thousands. They all now know about the hospice,” said Jenkins, a vocal supporter of the project.
“They know Ed’s on board. They know it’s a great cause. They’ve got great people behind it and it keeps the profile up. As each pledge comes in, we’ll get closer to that goal.”
Zaparaniuk thanked Jenkins for matching the smile cookie donation.
“It’s a big help, it’s a good cause,” he said.
Hospice board member Ralph Boychuk said they’re now raised about $2,4 million, and are aiming for the $3.2 – $3.5 million range.
“We’re really aggressively getting there. We’re really happy with people like Ed and Malcolm that can contribute to us getting to the finish line on this project,” he said.
Jenkins said this is another example of local business owners giving back to the community in a way that multinational corporations do not.
“There are companies in this town that don’t do much very much. Big companies — you don’t see a lot of money coming back into the community. You see Brinks trucks rolling out of town full of cash, but you don’t see people reinvesting in the community where we live. Ed and I and other great people who have been involved in this think differently. This is where we live. This is for our kids. This is for our grandparents.
“We just wish some of the big multinational people that pour money out of the community would put some back in.”
Zaparaniuk agreed.
“We’ve got to keep donating if we want it ready for when we’re ready (to use it),” he said.
“Giving back to the community, that’s what it’s all about.”
