Tim Hortons Smile Cookie week will take place from May 1-7. The iconic chocolate chunk cookies topped with a smile will be on sale for $1.50 and will be available at every participating Tim Hortons in Kingston.
This year local Kingston stores will direct 100 per cent of Smile Cookie proceeds to Kingston Health Sciences Centre’s (KHSC) Child & Youth Mental Health Program through the University Hospitals Kingston Foundation (UHKF).
“After many wonderful and successful years of supporting the NICU we felt that we had an opportunity to bring awareness to other critical areas of care within KHSC” says Leanne O’Mara, Owner at Tim Hortons. “Since the pandemic, the mental well-being of youth has really come to the forefront as an area where we could help. We are thrilled to support the important work that Kingston Health Sciences is doing to support children and youth.”
Funds raised through the Smile Cookie campaign will help provide patient supplies, therapeutic resources, activities and other programs to help our vulnerable patients.
Children and youth are at a critical stage in their development; losing social connections like attending school regularly, or in-person activities like youth groups, clubs and sports (as they did during the pandemic) can have a huge impact on their social skills and mental health. Donors help facilitate the exceptional care these children, youth and their families need.
“Prior to the pandemic child and youth mental health needs were on the rise and the pandemic has only increased the need for mental health support in our community. We are now seeing more referrals in our outpatient programs due to an increase in anxiety and depression and our inpatient unit continues to see more children admitted with behavioral challenges,” says Nicholas Axas, Program Operational Director, Mental Health and Addiction Care at KHSC. “To hear that Tim Hortons has decided to make children’s mental health services at KHSC the focus of this year’s Smile Cookie campaign makes me so proud to be part of this community. This campaign will go a long way in helping those in need, who often face stigmatization due to a mental health or addiction diagnosis.”
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