Coins for Kids is well underway at Westshore Town Centre.
Every purchase made at the mall until Nov. 9 has the potential to help one of 17 local elementary schools fund new playground equipment, art supplies, education kits and more.
The fundraiser, which has seen several variations over the last eight years, gets shoppers involved by encouraging them to submit their Westshore Town Centre receipts, or by making a donation to the Goldstream Food Bank Society.
Before submitting the receipts, shoppers are encouraged to write the name of the school they want to support on the back of the receipt or on an envelope that’s provided. Each dollar spent equals one point and the two schools with the most points at the end receive $1,500 and $1,000, respectively. A third school, whose name is drawn at random, will receive $700.
“(The money) goes directly to the parents’ (advisory) council, not to the school or the teachers,” said Sandra Doris, the centre’s marketing manager of retail services. “We really wanted to have the onus on the parents. They know better than we do.”
New this year, points can also be accumulated through food bank donations, with each bag of non-perishable donations earning 500 points toward one of the schools.
“If you’re not spending a lot, but you bring in a bag of donations for the food bank, you can still contribute to your school,” Doris said.
As well, any receipts from food vendors, such as Original Joe’s, Romeo’s or Fairway Market, earn five times the points.
Westshore Town Centre is also accepting cash donations to the food bank.
For more information, visit westshoretowncentre.com/category/special-events/ or call 250-474-3269.
acowan@goldstreamgazette.com