A Bradford Christmas and Bradford’s Freshii hosted a fundraiser a couple of weeks ago where they raised a total of $1,500 for the Helping Hand Food Bank.
One dollar from select bowls sold at Freshii was donated to A Bradford Christmas in support of their fundraiser aiming to collect a grand total of $50,000 for the Helping Hand Food Bank by Dec. 1.
“The part that I was very happy and pleased with was the community that showed up, ” states Salim Bardai, owner of Bradford’s Freshii. “It reaffirms my statement that Bradford is an amazing community, and if you do something worthwhile, people will come out and support it.”
The fundraiser collected $100 through Freshii’s sales as well as an additional $650 in cash donations made from customers who stopped by during lunchtime.
MP Scot Davidson wanted to help support A Bradford Christmas’ initiative and offered to match the donations, adding another $750 to the pot.
“I think the initiative these girls have shown is amazing [and] at the end of the day, I’m a big believer that small things add up to big things,” states Davidson. “They’re getting closer to their big goal… this all started here with a dollar from a bowl and look what it’s grown into.”
Two cheques were presented to the new president of the Helping Hand Food Bank, Carolyn Khan, and the food bank’s treasurer Trevor Nyers on Monday morning. Both Nyers and Khan were very pleased with the resourcefulness of the sisters who organized the fundraiser, Emily & Sarah Dahlgren, founders of A Bradford Christmas.
“The support these ladies are providing the community and the Helping Hand Food Bank is incredible!” exclaims Nyers. “They are well on their way to achieving their $50,000 goal. There is no doubt with their tenacity, they will achieve it! So proud of them.”
“We were extra thrilled after last year and the hard work they put in and the exhaustion they felt, that they still wanted to do it again this year,” shares Khan. “Money always works better for us [because] we can buy in bulk and get better deals in town.”
The Helping Hand Food Bank serves approximately 300 clients, and each Christmas hamper is worth roughly $125. The Dahlgren sisters decided to go above the minimum amount needed to support the food bank and set the fundraiser goal to $50K. So far, the girls have raised $7,000 of their goal.
“The girls have done something really wonderful for the food bank – they’ve got us on the map!” expresses Khan. “We’ve always been a small little place that was just really relying on private donations and a few schools, and all of a sudden, we’re getting thrusted into the retail and restaurant industry, and we’re loving it!”
Bradford schools used to organize food drives for the local food bank every year, but due to COVID they are unable to host any at this time, and instead, the schools have been instructing residents to e-transfer their donations directly to the food bank.
“This is the time when people will need it!” urges Khan. “These two [girls], they’re going places… I’ve never met such young people who are so forward-thinking and just so community-minded, they’re amazing.”
To help A Bradford Christmas with their goal, donations can be made to [email protected].
