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Tim Hortons Camp Day rolls in the dough

It was a hot day for coffee and for fundraising at the Ponoka Tim Hortons.
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Wayne Marsden, one of the Ponoka Tim Hortons franchise owners, waits with baited breath to get dumped into the ice cold water at the dunk tank - just one of the fundraising methods used at the annual Camp Day event on May 31. Photos by Jordie Dwyer

It was a hot day for coffee and for fundraising.

The Ponoka Tim Hortons location raised nearly $4,600 during the annual Camp Day fundraiser on May 31, which included the proceeds from coffee sales, special bracelets, balloons and a celebrity dunk tank.

The money raised from the one-day, nationwide event goes to the Tim Horton Children’s Foundation to support their camp programming, which was expected to provide more than 19,000 youth from low-income families with a fun trip experience away from home.

Wayne Marsden, who co-owns the local franchise with his brother Darryl, was among those who took the plunge for customers over a three hour span. He was joined in the dunk tank by Ponoka RCMP Const. Steven Edwards and Ponoka Fire Department Fire Chief Jamie Wilkinson.

“It was one of the biggest days for us so far. The response was really good and customers seemed to jump on board with their support,” Marsden said.

“People were even just driving up and handing us donations because they weren’t able to stop.”

Marsden added that his staff were great at getting into the spirit behind the fundraiser, which started a few weeks prior to the big wind up on May 31.

“One of our employees got really excited about it that she was selling bracelets at every opportunity. It’s just a great thing to see,” he added.

The final total from the nationwide campaign won’t be officially released until later this week, but it’s anticipated this year’s amount will exceed the $12.4 million from 2016.

The camps are also designed with programs that support the attendees to become responsible, caring and motivated individuals.