By Cecilia Nasmith
Smile Cookie week is always big news at Tim Hortons, because purchasers know the entire $1 they pay goes to help some important local cause.
This year, Smile Cookie Week is Sept. 16 to 22 and – for the second year in a three-year commitment – the nine Tim Hortons locations between Port Hope and Cobourg will donate those proceeds to help see Ed's House to completion.
Currently under construction on Ontario Street in Hamilton Township, Ed's House will be a 10-bed hospice facility to provide round-the-clock end-of-life care at no cost to those receiving the service. From that location too, the lead agency in the initiative, Community Care Northumberland, will headquarter all the hospice and palliative-care volunteer services it has made available for years, with a focus on patient care, outreach and education.
Tim Hortons owners Kim and John Meeussen and Ron and Jeri Horton-Joyce are pleased to support this wonderful cause for a second year. The $30,910 their Smile Cookies raised for Ed's House last year puts them well on the way to meeting their three-year $100,000 commitment.
Chain-wide, the Smile Cookie story is 23 years old, its first beneficiary being the Hamilton Children's Hospital in Ontario. Today, the annual campaign supports 550 local charities, hospitals and community programs – to the tune of $7.8 nationwide in 2018, one freshly baked, lovingly crafted cookie at a time.
At this week's launch, Community Care Northumberland executive director Trish Baird extended her thanks to the local owners.
“The staff and volunteer teams at each local Tim Hortons are amazing as they ask the community to 'Get A Smile, Give A Smile and Make A Difference' by purchasing a Smile Cookie,” Baird said.
“During Smile Cookie week, our volunteers will be helping at the Tim Hortons from Port Hope to Colborne, helping to create awareness about Ed's House and Community Care Northumberland's hospice services.”
As you pick up your Smile Cookie, she added, remember to pass the smile along by treating your friends and co-workers, or perhaps even bringing them as a delightful surprise at any meeting, hockey practice or community gathering you may have scheduled that week with a new addition to the campaign – pre-orders for Smile Cookies at any of the participating Tim Hortons.
