THUNDER BAY — A big day for burger enthusiasts as the winners of Novemburger were announced.
The fundraising campaign took on its fifth year to help raise money for United Way Thunder Bay to support local food programs within the community.
This year, 27 restaurants took on the challenge to have the best Novemburger, with two dollars from each sale going to the United Way.
Erika Mikkola, Novembuger creator and organizer for United Way Thunder Bay, called 2023 a record-breaking year when it comes to burgers sold and funds raised,
"Collectively, they were able to sell 22,415 Novemburgers, which is absolutely outstanding, and we couldn't have done this campaign without them."
With donations pouring in from the burger sales, some restaurants topped up their contributions and a grand total of more than $64,000 was raised for the charity.
Evergreen A United Neighbourhood supports children, youth, and their families who reside in the Simpson Ogden community and is one of the recipients of funds raised.
Executive director Linda Bruins said those funds make a huge impact.
"This is great because then I could tell the kids, we're going to eat well again next year," she said.
She noted the organization provides an after-school program and hot meals four days a week.
"We do crowd-friendly, kid-friendly food, but we're doing 200 meals a week,' she said.
This year featured a new award of People's Choice which went to Beefcakes Burger Factory, with Dawson General Store and The Sal, second and third respectively.
For chosen ambassadors who were tasked with meticulously rating each burger, Dawson General Store came out on top and takes both the trophy and bragging rights until next year's launch, which is expected to be even bigger than this year.
With next year being the 60th anniversary for United Way Thunder Bay, Mikkola said to expect bigger and better for Novemburger 2025, "we have some really big goals for the November Burger campaign. We are going even bigger, better and bolder than this year."
"I'm not going to say too much because we're going to keep it under wraps, but we're really working on a few special partnerships for next year," said Mikkola.
