Volunteers from the Canadian Hero Fund braved the chill at Bloor an St. George on Monday morning to give out hot chocolate for donations.
U of T students founded the group a month ago to help military families. They have an ambitious goal: to raise $2.5 million in the next five years to be put towards scholarship opportunities for the children and spouses of fallen soldiers.
“Most children who would qualify for the scholarships are too young right now, so the demand will be more prevalent 10 to 15 years down the road,” said Michael Ball, an exec and a final-year U of T student. Still, the group hopes to start giving out awards as early as this fall.
After three hours at their sidewalk table, the Fund is $804.39 closer to their goal. Ball estimated 200 visitors stopped by.
Ball said the group has been contacted by interested students from U of T as well as Dalhousie, the University of Alberta, McGill, and others.
They’re catching attention elsewhere, too. Army News turned up to gather footage to show soldiers overseas. The L’Espresso Bar Mercurio location at the Woodsworth residence donated the hot chocolate; All Signs and Sign-A-Rama gave free banners.
More information can be found at herofund.ca, or by following the group’s Twitter and Facebook pages.
