In partnership with the Victoria Hospitals Foundation, Canadian Tire locations in Greater Victoria will collect and match donations to help the Royal Jubilee Hospital purchase a CryoCath CryoConsole – a piece of cardiac-care equipment used to help restore the heart health of people who experience arrhythmias. What’s more, the retailer will match all donations up to $20,000.
“These are necessary pieces of equipment that are really hard to attain through the normal processes that we follow in health care,” said Dr. Anthony Della Siega, an interventional cardiologist at Royal Jubilee Hospital. “It's endeavours like this that allow us to get this equipment earlier.”
This drive, called Fix-A-Heart, was founded in 2003 by Peter Spillette, the former owner of the Langford Canadian Tire store. Since then, it has raised over $1 million to purchase 90 pieces of hospital equipment.
“This campaign provides the opportunity for people to donate what they can this holiday season," said Danielle Mulligan, the Victoria Hospital Foundation’s manager of events. "It also provides the opportunity for the foundation to celebrate donations of all sizes and help foster a culture of giving.”
Siega further emphasized the importance of this fundraiser.
“I've been here for about 20 years now and this program in and of itself has funded so much equipment that I use on a daily basis and patients come into contact with on a daily basis,” he said.
All donations will be collected at Canadian Tire checkouts. The stores hope to raise $100,000 by Dec. 24.
“More than 200,000 residents undergo cardiac assessments and more than 6,300 cardiac procedures are performed in our hospitals each year," said Mulligan. "When you donate at the till, you can be proud knowing your support will have a far-reaching impact in our community.”
