Convenience Stores raise $82,500 for Children's Wish Foundation

OTTAWA, ON--(Marketwired - October 18, 2017) - The Canadian Convenience Stores Association (CCSA) is proud to help celebrate Small Business Week in Canada by presenting a cheque for $82,500 to the Children's Wish Foundation, which was raised during the first National Convenience Store Day.

Launched in Atlantic Canada in 2012, for the first time, National Convenience Store Day was held in every province on August 30th to celebrate the contributions of convenience stores to their communities and to thank their customers. This year, the CCSA committed to funding Zoe's Wish. Zoe is an enthusiastic five-year-old who has already undergone major surgery to remove a large tumour, a kidney and lymph nodes and is currently enduring 24 grueling weeks of intense chemotherapy.

"Convenience retailers are proud to support their communities," said Ian White, Retail Chair of the CCSA and Vice President of Marketing with Parkland Fuel Corporation, whose company was the title sponsor for this year's event through their On the Run / Marche Express brand. "We thank our customers and the community leaders, who joined us on National Convenience Store Day to help bring a smile to Zoe's face by granting her wish to go to Disneyland."

More than 175 convenience stores participated across the country, with 190 community leaders marking the day and/or volunteering to take a shift behind the counter. The list included the Prime Minister, Leader of the Official Opposition, premiers, federal and provincial members of parliament, chiefs of police and two Olympic athletes.

The Honorable Bardish Chagger, Canada's Minister of Small Business and Tourism, participated at two neighborhood stores in her Waterloo-area riding. "I know the hard work that convenience store employees put in every day to serving their customers, and their communities. C-Store Day was a wonderful opportunity to raise funds for the Children's Wish Foundation, while having the chance to get behind the counter, engage with customers, and showcase the hard work our retailers are doing every single day."

Since Convenience Store Day was launched back in 2012, over $232,000 has been raised for the Children's Wish Foundation of Canada. Chris Kotsopoulos, CEO of the Foundation says that the funds have gone a long way in helping to bring a little happiness to children diagnosed with a life-threatening illness: "The funds raised to date through Convenience Store Day have made approximately 23 heartfelt wishes possible. The power of a wish is both profound and lasting, and its positive effects are felt not only by our wish kids, but also by their families and the larger community around them. We deeply appreciate the generosity of retailers, their staff, community leaders and the Canadian Convenience Stores Association."

For more information about Convenience Store Day, please visit www.cstoreday.ca.

About the Canadian Convenience Stores Association
The Canadian Convenience Stores Association is the national voice for convenience retailers. Working alongside its regional and national affiliated Associations, the CCSA brings together the retailers, distributors, suppliers and manufacturers in the convenience retail channel, who serve 10 million customers each day across the country.

www.cstores.ca | @CanadianCstores

About The Children's Wish Foundation of Canada
The Children's Wish Foundation of Canada is the largest all Canadian wish granting charity dedicated to granting wishes to Canadian children between the ages of 3 and 17 who are diagnosed with a life-threatening illness. For more than 30 years, Children's Wish has worked tirelessly to grant heartfelt wishes to nearly 25,000 children and their families. For item wishes, everything is included for the child to enjoy the wish immediately. With our experience and expertise, most wishes take a few weeks to arrange. In an emergency, we can fulfill a child's wish in days. Staff is on call 24/7 should a family need assistance or have an emergency. The average cost of a wish is $10,000.00.

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