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The President's Choice Children's Charity is dedicated to helping children
who are physically or developmentally challenged.
We provide direct financial assistance in the purchase of mobility
equipment, environmental modifications, physical therapy and more in an
effort to remove some of the obstacles that make everyday living extremely
difficult for these children.
Loblaws founded the charity in 1989 and has since raised in excess of
$15,000,000 and helped over 3,500 families across Canada. Anyone with a
child or young adult under the age of 25 with a physical or developmental
disability can apply for financial assistance through this program. Just
stop by Neil's Independent Grocers and talk to Neil for more information.
This past year, the staff at Neil's Independent Grocers held barbecues,
walkathons, skateathons, draws, fish ponds and cake tables, raising over
$10,000 for the President's Choice Charity. In recognition for its efforts,
two local families received grants through the program.
In the photo above, Neil Lindenbach, owner of Neil's Independent Grocers,
is shown with the Poirier Family of Hanmer. Claire Poirier is a single
mother, raising three children. She is in the photo with two of her
children: Francois (18), who attends Grade 12 at Ecole Secondaire Hanmer,
and Isaac (10). Anik (6) was at home at the time of the photo.
For Claire, who was born and raised in Valley East, being the mother of
an autistic child, Isaac, means being always unsure of the future.
"Each day is a new day and you just don't know what it will bring.
Isaac attends school at Ste. Marie in Azilda because it is the only school I
know of that offers a special classroom for autistic children. He is
extremely hyper-sensitive and takes a long time to adjust to changes in his
routine, so I find that being in this class is good for him at this
time."
It is quite difficult raising three children as a single mom in the first
place, but having an autistic child brings with it even more challenges.
Claire holds down two part-time jobs as a nurse so that she can take more
time off if needed to attend to Isaac's requirements or to catch up on some
much-needed rest.
"Francois is a great help to me," Claire declared. "I also
need to hire help from time to time."
The grant from the President's Choice Children's Charity will be used to
erect a fence around Claire's property in order to ensure that Isaac remains
in the yard and doesn't venture off without telling anyone where he is
going. This has always been a safety concern for the Poirier family and
having the fence is going to make it much easier to allow Isaac to enjoy
playing in the yard.
Neil is extremely proud of his staff who are always willing to take part
in fund-raising ventures to assist in the ultimate goal of raising money for
this worthwhile charity. "To have two grants in the same year is really
quite remarkable and will certainly help motivate my staff even more."
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