Holiday Smile Cookie campaign Nov. 18 to 24
A sweet collaboration will bring smiles to many faces while also helping out two important causes.
The Holiday Smile Cookie campaign is returning to Tim Hortons from Nov. 18 to 24. Through this campaign, half of the proceeds go to the Tim Hortons Foundation Camps while the other half goes towards local charities and community groups.
This year, the Stonewall location has selected the parent advisory council’s project to revive the track at Warren Collegiate Institute as the recipient of half the funds.
Fallon Campbell, a learning support teacher and French teacher at WCI, said the track revival project started a couple years ago.
“It really took off this summer when we were able to complete Phase 1 of our plan, which was fixing our drainage of the track,” she said, adding that many volunteers and donations made the work possible.
“Now we are on to Phase 2, which is building up a proper base for a six-lane track. After that, we’ll work to asphalt the track.”
They’re currently in the process of getting quotes from contractors for the next phase, which will likely ring in at six figures. Fundraising efforts continue for the project, which also just received a provincial From the Ground Up grant.
Once the track is complete, they’re hoping that other schools and community members will use it too.
“We’re encouraging middle schools to use the track. For the middle schools that feed into our high school, like Grosse Isle and Warren and Woodlands, they will sometimes go to Stonewall to practice, and that’s where their divisional meet is held,” Campbell said.
“It’s the same for us. We didn’t have a track that was safe enough to run so we’d run on the street. We often take athletes over to Stonewall to practise on the track there. This will allow for better access for people in our area to do the sport but also allow people in the community and surrounding communities to have a way to be active in a safe space.”
Jamie Pope, owner of the Stonewall Tim Hortons, said WCI staff members Michelle Riddell and Fallon Campbell reached out to her early in the year to discuss potentially partnering for the Smile Cookie campaign. Soon after, she met with them and learned about the track upgrade project.
“I love that the track will serve not just school age kids but also adults living in the community and surrounding communities, looking for that nice walking surface as part of a healthy lifestyle. I also love that the track will accommodate many of the surrounding communities schools,” Pope said.
“As a business in Stonewall, we are so grateful for the support we’ve received from Stonewall and the many surrounding communities. We are grateful for the chance to give back.”
The community is already showing their support through plenty of pre-orders for the Holiday Smile Cookies, which are white chocolate sugar cookies infused with red and green sprinkles and hand-decorated with a smiling face in white icing. Students from WCI and feeder schools in the area are taking pre-orders of cookies by the dozen or half-dozen.
“We require volunteers from our own student groups but also we’re enlisting leadership groups from the middle schools and any other different clubs that would want to help out to decorate the cookies with the icing smile,” Campbell said.
The parent advisory council’s goal is to sell 10,000 Holiday Smile Cookies through the campaign.
“I can’t stress enough how thankful we are for all the volunteers who have already stepped up for this project. It’s been a great experience to see community members and students and parents come together to see this through,” Campbell said.
“The end goal is to have a space for people of all ages to enjoy safely and be proud of. However, the process from start to finish is the magical part. As a rural small community, this project will serve as a means to showcase the power of community, leadership in our youth and hard work. Already, several groups — from parents to students to staff — have come together to see this project through. I know that the communities will rally together to make this campaign a success.”
Any community members or local businesses interested in pre-ordering Holiday Smile Cookies can email Fallon Campbell at fcampbell@isd21.mb.ca or Michelle Riddell at mriddell@isd21.mb.ca or contact Warren Collegiate at 204-322-5586. Order forms are also available at the Stonewall Tim Hortons store. A number of different pickup locations can be arranged. The pre-order deadline is Nov. 17, and the Tim Hortons Holiday Smile Cookie campaign runs from Nov. 18 to 24.
