Christmas came early for several local charities thanks to the Rotary Club of Orillia.
Members from the local club, toting a purse full of cheques totalling $55,000, handed out the money on Giving Tuesday thanks to funds raised from its second annual Car Lottery.
Returning recipients of funds included The Sharing Place, The Lighthouse, Orillia and Lake Country Physician Recruitment Committee and Mariposa House Hospice. New recipients included the Couchiching Conservancy, Hospice Orillia and the Rotary Club of Orillia's charitable trust.
Jack Nolan, chair of the local club's Car Lottery committee, said it's not the amount of money that is important, it's that Rotary can give back to the community.
"The fact that we made money and we can contribute to all of these charities makes it a success," said Nolan.
The Sharing Place Food Centre received $10,000 this year.
"This is a really important year because food insecurity rates have gone up. The Simcoe Muskoka Health Unit updated their stats in July and 30.7 per cent of households in our county were food insecure at some point last year," said Kelly Allen, the food bank's development manager.
"There is such a great need. This is a huge honour to be selected, so thank you," Allen said.
The Lighthouse also received $10,000.
The emergency shelter houses 50 people and the supportive housing building at the Queen Street site supports 20 more. It recently started a youth shelter program and introduced an outreach van connecting people in need to local services.
"We are full every single night and there is still a great need in our community," said Meagan Bianco, development director for The Lighthouse. "This makes a huge difference and a tangible one you can see in the community."
The Couchiching Conservancy, which is a local land trust, received $7,500 from this year's Car Lottery.
"There is always properties that we are working on to make sure they are protected forever. This makes a big difference to that," said Tanya Clark, fundraising and engagement manager for the Conservancy.
Hospice Orillia was also given $7,500; the funds will be directed to free programs for clients run out of the office.
"We are really proud to be a part of this community and this will make a huge difference to the clients we serve," said Louise Brazier, coordinator of bereavement services for the local agency.
The Orillia and Lake Country Physician Recruitment Committee was given $7,500. The program has been working to attract more doctors to the area since 2001 but is needed now more than ever, said Marino Fernandopulle, chair of the committee.
"We have the tall task of dealing with this physician shortage that we are experiencing that is exacerbated by this huge cohort of physicians that are reaching retirement age ... The community has been behind our work. We now have more resources to go out and seek qualified candidates to come and help take care of our community," Fernandopulle said.
Mariposa House Hospice was awarded $7,500. Ted Markle, executive director, was on hand to accept the cheque.
"We are so honoured to be supported by the Rotarians of this community and grateful to all the volunteers who helped in the selling of lottery tickets," he said.
The Rotary Club of Orillia also gave $5,000 to its charitable trust.
"We are taking the smallest amount of money because we feel it's important to put it in the hands of these great organizations who can do stuff we can't do. We are just a small club of volunteers," Nolan said.
"Our money goes into our charity funds and we fill local community needs. Like we help seniors with mobility equipment, we had a young woman who needed to go oversees for an operation she couldn't get here, and we contribute to some of the church charities such as the St. James' luncheon they do once a week for the homeless," Nolan said.
The Car Lottery was such a success the club will run it again next year, Nolan said.
The grand prize winner of the 2024 Ford Bronco Sport, worth $57,232, was Alice Braslis of Scarborough. The winner of the 50/50 draw was Eileen Jones of Port Sydney who won $26,810. The draws took place Oct. 5 at Thor Motors Ford Orillia.
