Military members from CFB Borden served up smiles on McDonald’s busiest day of the year, which locally raised a record-breaking $70,000.
Local McDonald’s restaurants once again supported military families at Borden as one of the recipients of their McHappy Day fundraising on 10 May. $1,500 of the proceeds is being donated to the Borden Military Family Resource Centre (BFRC).
“It was a great day!” said Rory MacKinnon, owner/operator of McDonald’s restaurants in Angus, Alliston, Caledon Village, Orangeville, Schomberg, and Shelburne. MacKinnon is also an Honorary Colonel of the Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF) Academy.
All eight of his McDonald’s locations contributed to the fundraising efforts, with 10 per cent of every order going back to local charities. The Angus location alone raised $12,000.
McDonald’s staff are used to seeing members in uniform on the other side of the drive-thru window. This year, military members were once again on the inside, giving back to the community by serving customers and supporting this important community fundraiser. Base Commander, Colonel Jonathan Michaud and Acting Base Chief, CWO Gauthier, spent the morning taking orders and passing out smiles at the drive-thru window, while others behind the scenes prepared orders.
For Lizzy Wright, People Manager at the Angus McDonald’s, having the recipients helping out on this busy day is part of the fun.
“I think the benefit for us is its cool seeing that we’re more than just someone who works at McDonald’s,” said Wright. “We are supporting our community and having the community members want to help on this day is amazing, because we’re seeing the benefits of us giving back. It’s just an overall cool feeling.”
The $70,000 donation was shared between the BFRC, Ronald McDonald House Charities Canada, Stevenson Memorial Hospital, Headwater Healthcare Foundation, and Big Brothers Big Sisters of Dufferin & District.
