Prince George Tim Hortons restaurants raised $4,223 during the third annual Orange Sprinkle Donut campaign, which contributed toward the $1 million raised for Indigenous organizations throughout Canada.
Tim Hortons raised $111,798 across B.C. throughout the two-day campaign, which ran from Sept. 30 to Oct. 1.
Over the past three years, Tim Hortons has raised over $3.6 million for the Orange Shirt Society, the Indian Residential School Survivors Society, and New Pathways Foundation in Quebec.
These funds have helped provide support for the organizations to do their important work in developing crucial supports, programming and educational opportunities in Indigenous communities across Canada.
The idea for the Orange Sprinkle Donut campaign originated in 2021 after the discovery of unmarked graves on the grounds of the former residential school in Kamloops.
Indigenous Tim Hortons restaurant owners Shane Gottfriedson and Joe Quewezance operate a Tims restaurant in Kamloops a short distance from the site of the former residential school, which became an impromptu gathering place for people who visited the site to pay their respects.
Gottfriedson, Quewezance and a number of other Indigenous Tim Hortons restaurant owners were part of a working group that came up with the concept for the Orange Sprinkle Donut fundraising campaign.
"Every dollar raised through the Orange Sprinkle Donut campaign is a testament to the power of community and collaboration. Donations play a crucial role in supporting services that often receive limited funding, such as Resolution Health Support Workers, Cultural Support Providers and Elders Services and the Trauma Informed Cultural Support program,” says Angela White, executive director of the Indian Residential School Survivors Society.
“By contributing to the campaign, you enable us to expand our reach and fulfill more requests, making a tangible difference in the lives of those we serve. Your generosity directly translates into more opportunities for healing, empowerment, and justice within our community.”
Orange Shirt Day has been observed on Sept. 30 since 2013, when Phyllis Webstad told her story of her first day of residential school.
Her organization, the Orange Shirt Society, and the Every Child Matters movement she created, continue to raise awareness about Canada's history of residential schools, along with honouring the survivors and their families and the children who never returned home.
In 2021, the federal government also designated Sept. 30 as the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation.
