THUNDER BAY — The Hill City Kinsmen gave out $38,000 in donations to four local charities on Thursday with proceeds from their Dream Draw and Friends Lending Hands event held earlier this year.
George Jeffrey Children’s Foundation received $16,000 from the Dream Draw fundraiser, a raffle with a grand prize of an ATV and boat. Our Kids Count took home $9,000 and Wilderness Discovery Centre also received $5,000 from the Dream Draw money.
Our Kids count received another $4,000 with money raised through the Kinsmen’s Friends Lending Hands event. The other $4,000 raised through that event went to the Thunder Bay chapter of Easter Seals.
Hill City Kinsmen member, Gary Prosser, explained that Friends Lending Hand is a dinner and auction where sponsors are invited to attend.
The recipients of the funds raised are typically chosen by the chair of each event, added Prosser.
“Many of these (charities) that we've given money to (Thursday), they've been part of many fundraising events that we've done in the past and they work so hard to try and get some more fundraising and we're there to support them,” he said. “It's really, it's a team effort.”
The $13,000 Our Kids Count received from the Kinsmen is not only appreciated but important to the organization that focuses on families and youth in the community, said Sonia Kruger, fundraising coordinator at Our Kids Count.
“This money is going to go a long way to helping feed a lot of families, helping to run programs for families, especially during the holiday season when things get a little bit tighter and a little bit tougher,” said Kruger.
She added donations from community groups like the Kinsmen are essential for Our Kids Count to continue its programming.
“We do a very diverse programming set at Our Kids Count and a lot of these programs could not happen without the support of the community and agencies like the Hill City Kinsmen,” Kruger said.
