Home Hardware raises over $1K

Times Reporter

 

Through their skate sharpening donation box, Strathmore Home Hardware has been able to raise funds for the Growing Families Society and Christmas Hamper – $750, and $400 respectively. 

“We sharpen a lot of skates through the course of the year. We start heavy duty in October and right through to when hockey’s over,” said Perry Banadyga, owner of the Home Hardware. “If people are paying cash, where we don’t have to put through the till, we just have it put in the box. Then we donate it to different causes.”

Banadyga says the store has donated to sports teams in town and plans to contribute more 2014. 

“We sort of take the money we’ve collected and divvy it up a bit. Growing Families have had most of their funding cut, and we donated more to them simply because they’re not recognized, and they don’t get many funds,” Banadyga said. “We’d like to get it to eventually, where groups just send us letters saying we’d like to be part of this. Then we’d put a poster up and say this month’s funds go to, Girl Guides, or whatever it may be.”

Last year was the first for the skate sharpening box charity initiative; $13,000 was donated to the Crisis Centre, with help from Home Hardware’s box and Sobey’s separate fundraising.

“I just really think that the community’s been good to us and we’d like to give back to the community. It’s a nice, easy way,” Banadyga said. “They’re paying for the skates anyways, so we just put the $5 in. We encourage people to pay cash if they can.”