Shoppers and staff at Asselin Your Independent Grocer in Hawkesbury raised more than $16,000 in support of the Hawkesbury Central Food Bank during the holiday season. On Tuesday, December 23, store owner Daniel Asselin and his team presented a $16,827 cheque to the food bank. Earlier in the week, donations were also made to the L’Orignal and Vankleek Hill food banks.
The holiday fundraiser ran from November 11 to December 13, during which customers could make cash donations or purchase pre-packaged food bags for $100 each.
The front-end team held a friendly contest among cashiers to see who could raise the most, with one individual selling 300 bags out of the 1,126 purchased overall. Management noted their team has consistently seen strong results when encouraging customer donations.
“There were a few standout donations this year,” Asselin said. “One woman purchased 100 bags, representing a $1,000 donation, while another individual contributed $400 to the campaign.”
Charlebois praised the community’s generosity this holiday season, saying it was inspiring and showed what can be achieved when people come together to support those in need.
Asselin noted that the purchased food bags had an approximate retail value of $20,000. He added that the store donated the labour and absorbed the cost of the profit margin on the donated items.
The fundraising team emphasized that customers were the driving force behind the campaign’s success and that the credit belonged to the community.
“We simply couldn’t have done this without your generosity,” Lefebvre said.
