Residents of Desert Cove, near the Spallumcheen Golf and Country Club, were in the giving spirit.
The residents showed the value of collecting, sorting, and donating recyclable containers to the point they were able to present the Vernon Jubilee Hospital Foundation with a cheque for $3,410 for the foundation’s Light a Bulb campaign.
The Desert Cove Homeowners Association (DCHA) has a long history of giving to the foundation. For more than 10 years, the association has honoured the memories of residents of their community who have died with a donation to the hospital.
“A desire to contribute even more resulted in a proposal for an ongoing community bottle drive in addition to donations in memory,” said DCHA president Kathy Burwell. “The plan simply requires residents to leave their empty recyclable bottles and cans at a central location. Our volunteer elves, including Dave Caldwell who was the original elf, and now Jim Horsford, then sort, store and transport the collection into town.”
Funds are held in an account and presented annually to the foundation.
“From a humble beginning of $400 in the first year, the donation has grown in size each year,” said Burwell. “With the continued growth of Desert Cove Estates, we anticipate our donation will also grow.”
VJH Foundation president and 2020 Light a Bulb chairperson Michael Kinghorn said the Desert Cove community is a great example of how small acts can add up to have a great impact.
“We are incredibly grateful to the residents for truly embracing this project, and for the many hours they volunteer in order to keep this program running,” said Kinghorn.
Donations to the Light a Bulb campaign can be made online at vjhfoundation.org/donate, via phone at 250-558-1362, or mailed to Vernon Jubilee Hospital Foundation, 2101 – 32nd Street Vernon BC V1T 5L2. Every gift, great or small, brings the foundation closer to raising $275,000 for critical equipment at VJH.
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