A group of Confederation College students have brought in $21,000 to sponsor over 40 athletes in the Special Olympics Canada Winter Games. Developmental Services Worker Program Coordinator, Julie Zdep tells us she was surprised when her students were able to fundraise so much money. “We were astounded when they got pretty close to $10,000 dollars and we couldn’t believe it. We kept encouraging them, telling them they could do a little bit more.” $12,000 was raised by the students taking part in the Polar Bear Plunge in April and the other $9,000 through a variety of fundraising activities.
The school’s involvement spans from the Culinary Management program’s preparation of athlete lunches and the Police Foundations program’s assistance with Games security, to discussions with several other programs like media to support games activities with their functional expertise. President Kathleen Lynch tells us she is proud of the students who are working hands-on to gain educational experience and also help out a good cause.
November 21st will be a special day for the organization as an anonymous donor has stepped forward to match any sponsorships that are made that day. Spokesperson Warren Giertuga tells us donations will be matched to a maximum of 50 athletes or $25,000 which could help 100 athletes at the end of the day. “So all drafts whether it be online or in-person will be matched and we are super excited about that.”
