NEWS RELEASE
SHELLDALE FAMILY GATEWAY
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Shelldale Family Gateway is excited to announce that their first ever Family Fun-Raiser was an overwhelming success, raising $14,000 for the organization’s Youth and Community Programs.
“When we introduced the fundraising idea to the community, we were overwhelmed by the response. Through sponsorships and donations, we have raised $14,000, far exceeding our goal of $7,500,” says Shelldale Family Gateway Executive Director, Diana Boal. “These funds will go directly towards our programs that support the diverse needs of children, youth and families in our community.”
The event launched on July 1 with a Zoom call where Shelldale Family Gateway challenged communities across Guelph to get active throughout the summer. Families, children, teens and adults were asked to take part in daily exercises and track their progress. Participants logged their weekly activity and sent in their progress to be entered in for draws for prizes each week.
Response to the fitness challenge far exceeded a key objective for participation, with 36 families and 167 children and youth from Shelldale’s daily summer camp days taking part. Children as young as three, teens and adults all took on the fitness challenge with workout sessions developed by age category.
Kym Riley, owner of Mindful Movements Studio developed the workouts. “Along with her son Porter, Kym was instrumental in providing us with the direction we needed to create fun, healthy and attainable workouts that participants could watch on our website or follow along via written instructions that Kym provided,” says Boal. “While the fitness challenge was for four weeks, we have heard from participants that they will continue to do the workouts because they were so much fun, especially the duck walk.”
In response to the challenges and social isolation families have been facing during the pandemic, Shelldale Family Gateway’s fundraising committee, chaired by Board member Sharron Riley-Persson, wanted to create an event that would inspire families across Guelph to get active, boost their mental health and have some much-needed fun. “That’s how the Family Fun-Raiser came about,” explains Riley-Persson.
As soon as the event was introduced, support came flooding in. “Not only did families enthusiastically take part, local businesses were eager to show their support. From sponsorships, prize donations and media support, it was clear from the start that our community believes in the great work Shelldale Family Gateway does for children, youth and families in the Onward Willow neighbourhood. We are incredibly grateful for our sponsors’ support and can’t thank them enough for helping us almost double our fundraising goal.”
The Shelldale Family Gateway Family Fun-Raiser was a success thanks to Platinum Medal Sponsor Rona Guelph, Gold Medal Sponsor Rotary Club of Guelph, and Silver Medal Sponsors Riley Financial Group, SR-P Creations Gourmet Catering, INSITU and Skyline.
Bronze Medal Sponsors include Eastern Farm Machinery Limited, Guelph Police Association, House of Worship & Prayer Christian Centre, the Greg Persson Family and Rishan and Leanne Sathasivam. And Prize Sponsors included Pizzaville, Harvey’s, SR-P Creations Gourmet Catering and Wellington Brewery.
“We’d like to also thank our Media Sponsors Magic 106.1 and 1460 CJOY for helping us spread the word about our fundraiser through commercials and interviews. This made an incredible difference in raising awareness about how Shelldale Family Gateway enriches the lives of families and children in our community,” says Boal.
Due to the overwhelming response from the community, Shelldale Family Gateway hopes to make this an annual fundraiser.
For highlights from the Family Fun-Raiser visit shelldale.ca/family-fun-raiser or contact Diana Boal at [email protected].
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