Santa has come and gone, with the jolly old elf now taking some well-deserved time off, but that doesn't mean there isn't any Christmas spirit left in Thorold and its business community.
On Thursday, representatives from the Thorold BIA turned over proceeds from its inaugural Breakfast with Santa event to the Royal Canadian Legion, Branch 17 on Ormond Street.
“We’ll use that to help the different groups in the city,” said Legion President Eric Cuthbert, after receiving a cheque for $1,157.39. “This will come in handy. Every year, we adopt families at Christmas time, usually three, but sometimes more if we can. These funds will directly help us in doing that type of thing or if anybody comes to us during the year and needs help.”
When the BIA came calling to the Legion asking them to host the Dec. 21 event, Cuthbert said the veterans’ group was more than happy to help out and, at the same time, make the Legion and what it does more visible to the community and “let people know we're here to help if they need it.”
In addition to helping families at Christmas time, the Legion also provides support to minor sports teams in the city, as well as the 128 Flying Dragons Air Cadets squadron.
BIA chair Serge Carpino said the business group wants to be more involved in the community and work with others.
“It just brings more awareness of what we do and what we're involved in,” Carpino said. “These are important things, yeah, and I'm sure that these dollars through the Legion will be very well served, and somebody, a recipient, will benefit from it.”