NEWS RELEASE
THE WATER TOWER INN
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In December, The Water Tower Inn pledged 50 per cent of their holiday gift card sales to be shared by the United Way and Tumaini Afrika. Each local charity recently received a cheque for over $4,000, which will aid in their respective projects.
The United Way plans to use the funds to continue to support the operation of Harvest Algoma, United Way’s food security division. Harvest Algoma continues to fight local hunger and work towards poverty reduction with a commercial kitchen serving thousands of hot meals per month, a warehouse to receive and distribute large food donations, and a greenhouse and gardens launching this spring.
“United Way’s Harvest Algoma Food Resource Centre works tirelessly to assist our partner organizations by providing additional food support to their emergency programs. To date, we service 45 organizations across the district – Hornepayne to Serpent River. We’ve rescued nearly two million pounds of food since July 2018,” said Jessica Laidley, food resource centre manager for Harvest Algoma. “Every dollar donated to United Way’s Harvest Algoma goes back into continuing our operations and helps us become more sustainable. We cannot do the work without the support.”
Tumaini Afrika Sault Ste. Marie, is a locally based group of volunteers who are dedicated to giving a "hand up" to children and youth in Africa.
Tumaini has become, in many ways, a connection between our city and the people of Kenya.
“The citizens of Sault Ste. Marie have shown overwhelming generosity in supporting our fundraising efforts, especially with dinners, garage sales, and the purchase of goats that give young girls a start in raising money for their education. It is with deep gratitude that Tumaini has received the most recent in a long series of contributions from The Water Tower Inn, in addition to providing their venue and their resources in making some of Tumaini’s major fundraising events possible,” says the group.
Since 2014 Tumaini has undertaken projects that give a practical hand-up where the need has been greatest. Tumaini’s main focus is The Compass School on the western edge of Nairobi. Further, Tumaini helps to fund projects that empower girls and young women, helps support an orphanage, and has built community kitchens in the Mathare slum.
At this time Compass School needs to be relocated to land owned by the Compass Foundation. In the very near future, Tumaini will be launching a major campaign to help fund the construction of the new school.
“2020 was a tough year for everyone, especially our community partners. The Water Tower Inn team was really proud to support these two great groups. Giving back is at the core of our team’s beliefs,” said Jamie Hilsinger, marketing manager for The Water Tower Inn.
The Water Tower Inn has been a pillar of the Sault community for over 45 years, and has supported innumerable causes in the arts, education and poverty reduction.
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