Who would have thought buying a coffee could send a kid in need to a summer camp? The Tim Hortons Children’s Foundation (THCF) does and it has served children since 1975.
June 6 was Tim Hortons Camp Day and 100 per cent of coffee proceeds go to the foundation, which will send two deserving Ponoka kids to a camp this year. One of the owners, Wayne Marsden, said they started collecting money as soon as the clock struck midnight. They did not have a set goal, only to “raise as much funds as possible.”
Some of the local police came to help out. Cpl. Gary MacLaren was proud to serve coffee to the cause. “It’s a great honour to come and participate.”
Coffee lovers also had the opportunity to donate money and sign a special card for the foundation; $1 for a tent and $5 for a cabin with their name signed on the card.
Marsden said there was support from individuals and businesses which donated various items to a silent auction.
Total funds raised from the donations, silent auction items and coffee totalled $6,520, $3,968.98 of which was from coffee sales. More than 4,000 Tim Hortons across Canada and the United States participated with a record $11 million in donations compared to $9.9 million last year.
The money will send two deserving kids to a camp this summer.
“It was a fantastic day all around…Ponoka is a town of hearts,” stated Marsden.
The THCF forecasts it will send more than 15,000 kids to one of six Tim Hortons camps in 2012; and they are in St. George, ON; Kananaskis, AB; Campbellsville, KY; Tatamagouche, NS; Quyon, QC; and Parry Sound, ON.