Big Brothers Big Sisters of Oxford County receives nearly $41K from Smile Cookie campaign

A cheque presentation was held at the Tim Hortons Norwich Avenue location in Woodstock. In the photo are (left to right): Paul Tyndall, Erin Tyndall, Karen Lefebvre, Leslie Farrell, Kristen Ralph, Erica Hughes and Nicole Killaire. (Contributed Photo)

Emily Stewart, Echo Correspondent

Big Brothers Big Sisters of Oxford County (BBBS Oxford) are grateful for the Oxford County community stepping up and making a difference by buying cookies.

Tim Hortons in Innerkip, Ingersoll, and Woodstock sold the cookies and brought in over $81,000 split between BBBS Oxford and Tim Hortons camp programs. BBBS Oxford received just over $40,850 from the Tim Horton’s Holiday Smile Cookie campaign in Oxford County.

Liz Wismer-Van Meer, communications manager, is thrilled with the fundraiser results and said it was the best year yet in the three years of being part of the campaign.

"They work so hard to sell so many cookies and it's a lot of work for them and we just are absolutely thrilled to be able to receive this funding at a time when we're really needing it,” she said. “Our requests for support are increasing substantially and funding, of course, is always difficult to come by when we are not a government funded or core-funded agency. This is a huge help for us and helping us even getting more young people matched."

The funding will support all programming run by BBBS Oxford, including one-on-one and group mentorship programs, as well as activities for mentors and mentees.

BBBS Oxford is running the Holiday Spark campaign and is hoping to raise $40,000 to support youth. The organization is encouraging mentors and mentees to share their experience and seeking financial donations and volunteer applications.

As of Dec. 11, there were 135 youth on the organization’s waitlist looking to be matched with a mentor. Programming is free to mentees and their caregivers and anyone looking to mentor can also join for free.

"That's why these funds are so crucial so we can continue to not offer the programs we have been offering but continuing to build off of those and offering more programs as the demands continue to grow in Oxford County,” Wismer Van-Meer added.

In 2024, nearly 700 children and youth were matched in the mentoring programs by BBBS Oxford County.

More information about how to get involved with the Holiday Spark campaign can be found online by visiting https://oxford.bigbrothersbigsisters.ca/what-we-do/the-spark-campaign.