Lake Country Food Bank into a fundraising final

LAKE COUNTRY – The Lake Country Food Bank is into the finals in a national charity contest.

The contest started in September with the public voting for their favourite charity or not-for-profits. All the entries are competing for the $1-million dollars on offer from insurance company Aviva.

The group badly needs a new building and is hoping the contest will help with its fundraising efforts.

The Food Bank grabbed 6,600 votes before voting closed and Aviva announced Friday the proposal made it to the Community Fund Finals. The volunteers at the Food Bank have produced a video to thank everyone who voted for them.

“As a finalist, we'll receive a minimum of $5,000,” a post on the Food Bank’s Facebook page says. “In this round, there is no voting. Our idea will be scored by a panel of judges, beginning on Wednesday, Dec. 17.”

The judges will be handing out cash prizes anywhere between $50,000 and $100,000.

Winners will be announced Jan. 27, 2015.

Currently, the Food Bank is in the back of the old Winfield Elementary School building and the space is inadequate.

The District of Lake Country has donated land for the new building, and over $500,000 worth of cash and in-kind donations are already accounted for. The Society needs another $200,000 to get shovels in the ground.

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To contact the reporter for this story, email Howard Alexander at halexander@infonews.ca or call 250-491-0331. To contact the editor, email mjones@infonews.ca or call 250-718-2724.