Customers indulging their sweet tooth helped to raise $45,000 for Southlake Foundation by buying Tim Hortons Smile Cookies in Newmarket and Aurora last month.
The cookies were sold between Sept. 13 and 20 as part of the annual fundraising campaign.
Local Tim Hortons restaurant owners originally presented a cheque for $44,995.63 to representatives from the foundation Oct. 29 but when they saw the amount, the owners added an extra $5 to round up to $45,000.
“We just wanted to thank all of you, all of the Tim Hortons owners in our community, who took part in Smile Cookies this year. We are absolutely blown away with the support this year,” said Julie Fiorini, vice-president of marketing and communication with the foundation.
This is the third year local owners have donated the proceeds of the Smile Cookie sales to Southlake. In total, they have raised more than $128,000 over the past three years.
“To your customers who are so supportive, especially during such a weird time, we extend our huge gratitude and thanks,” Fiorini said.
Jim Alexander, who owns a number of Tims locations in Newmarket, said thanks is also directed to their employees.
“The real work was done by our employees. The poor bakers that had to squeeze those things,” he said of the cookies, which are decorated with a pink and blue smiley face.
While Alexander joked about the work required to decorate the cookies, he said the staff love to support the community.
Originally, he had hoped they would reach a three-year total of $100,000 with the fundraiser this year and said they are happy to see they beat that number.
Those funds will now help support Southlake Regional Health Centre.
“We did not direct the funds, so the money for the hospital can be used for whatever urgent needs there are,” Alexander said. “I think that was something we wanted to do as well, let the hospital figure out how to spend it, there’s no strings attached.”
Fiorini said the foundation is especially grateful for that.
“These funds will support the urgent needs of the hospital, which we know there are many, and so we thank you from the bottom of our hearts for everything,” she said.
Representatives of Southlake Foundation said a plaque is in the works that will be put on display at the hospital to commemorate all the support they have received and that local Tim Hortons owners will be invited to the unveiling when it’s ready.
