MOUNT FOREST– Wellington Heights Secondary School (WHSS) received a $6,000 donation on Nov. 5, from Dufferin Mutual Insurance Company in Mount Forest.
The donation will be directed to two school programs which support families in the Wellington Heights school community and have been impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic – the Warm Winter Wishes Program and the Food and Friends Program.
Due to COVID-19 restrictions, WHSS is not able to host their Warm Winter Wishes fundraising program this year, which would mean less support for families in need.
Warm Winter Wishes was started by Barb Cowen in 2002 and is an annual fundraiser at the school that is run by the Grade 12 Business Leadership class.
The 17th annual Warm Winter Wishes campaign was Cowen’s last year running the program and it raised $44,089 for families in need. Since then, Warm Winter Wishes has been taken over by C.J. Lopez.
School officials are hoping the traditions of the program can continue once the school can participate in fundraising activities again.
The Food and Friends program is run by the Children’s Foundation and brings healthy food to students in the school. They provide breakfast, snack and lunch programs throughout Dufferin, Wellington and Guelph schools. With changes due to the pandemic, the Food and Friends Program has started supporting those most in need at home through the Food and Friends at Home program.
School officials state the goal of dividing the donation between the two programs is to keep the spirit of Warm Winter Wishes alive this year and to continue providing the nutrition to students that is needed to be active in school.
“Thank you, Dufferin Mutual Insurance Company, this generous donation will help many families in need in the WHSS community,” school officials state.
