‘Blown away’ was the first reaction organizers had to the community’s response to a bottle drive fundraiser for the Ponoka Food Bank.
Ponoka-based company Elite Integrity Services, held a fundraiser on May 9 that featured a drive-thru drop-off and a hot dog barbecue that brought in nearly $6,800. This included more than $1,000 in hot dogs and donations along with a $500 donation from the Ponoka Bottle Depot.
“Having never organized something like this before, we really didn’t know what to expect — especially in a time when people may be leery about leaving their homes,” said Annette Zandberg, operations coordinator for Elite.
“When we saw the response, we were blown away. I think people want to help during a time like this, but they are unsure of how they can.”
At first, they had two 16-foot trailers ready. However, it wasn’t long before they knew that wasn’t going to be enough.
“Right from when we pulled up with our trailers at 9:30 a.m., we had people dropping their bottles off.
“Halfway through the day it was clear that this was not enough and by noon both trailers were filled and a steady stream of traffic wasn’t letting up. We were able to bring in an additional 22-foot and a 24-foot trailer,” she said.
“The 22-foot was filled and the 24-foot was about 60 per cent filled. It took four people almost three hours just to unload them at the bottle depot and the mountain of bottles was impressive.”
Another surprise was what the hot dogs took in.
“We weren’t allowed to exchange cash — as per health regulations — so we saw a lot of people giving $10 or $20 for a couple of hot dogs that were only $1,” added Zandberg.
“No one minded, since it was for such a great cause. People were really generous.”
The company spread the word via social media and a few signs, choosing the food bank and the bottle drive for a few reasons.
“Elite Integrity Services felt that it was our responsibility to help how we could. Like so many other companies, we also had to make some difficult changes to personnel and hours. We were not in a position to make any large donations, so we had to get creative. After throwing around a couple of ideas, we decided a bottle drive would be best given the social distancing limitations,” she explained.
“We chose the Ponoka Food Bank since we know that many people in our community are experiencing financial strain and feeding families is a practical way to help. There have been many reports of how food banks across the country are experiencing higher than normal traffic and we wanted to help.”
Zandberg added that the drive-thru hot dogs sale also made it feel more like a community event.
“One that people would want to take part in. We have all felt pretty isolated so we wanted to offer a safe way for people to get out of their houses and give back,” she said.
“We were so happy with how the community of Ponoka came together during a difficult time to support those who need it most.”