You may have heard the old saying that milk does a body good, but the reality is, not everyone is able to afford as much milk as they need.
“We found out last year that there were actually people putting water on their cereal,” says milk drive organizer Mickey McNeil.
That realization got McNeil’s creative juices flowing on a fundraiser idea. He set up a donation table at the community rink in Dominion, N.S., where he hosts an annual hockey tournament called Mickey’s Original Six.
People can drop off canned or powdered milk and the tournament will match all donations before giving the milk to the Glace Bay Food Bank.
“A can of milk is less than a cup of coffee,” says McNeil. “So, you give up one cup of coffee and you drop off a can of milk here.”
Food bank volunteer Wayne Marr says milk is in high demand, especially now that winter is around the corner.
“This is one of our greatest needs this time of year,” says Marr. “Just due to the fact that we’re coming upon Christmas, families can’t afford the orders that are required to feed a family during a Christmas meal.”
McNeil isn’t the only one matching milk donations; local businesses are also getting on board.
“It doesn’t take much effort to be nice, or give to someone,” says milk drive contributor Kenny McGillvary. “The things that we’re promoting, that Mickey is promoting, they’re things we can take for granted every day.”
McNeil hopes more businesses will accept his challenge to match the final milk total. He says the community is the real winner in the end.
“Say, if it’s $500 worth of milk here, I have to put in $500, VJ McGillivray’s Funeral Home has to put in $500, now we’re at $1,500,” says McNeil.
All of the milk collected will be dropped off at the food bank on Saturday.
With files from CTV Atlantic's Ryan MacDonald
