Mother’s Day love continued this week with a donation of food, flowers and treats to Newmarket’s Abuse Hurts as part of Operation Ramzieh’s “feed it forward” drive.
The agency, which supports children, women, and men whose lives have been affected by abuse, gratefully received the “huge” donation of 200 boxes of food, 200 bouquets and cookies yesterday, Abuse Hurts CEO Ellen Campbell said.
Aurora philanthropist, fashion entrepreneur and Real Housewives of Toronto star Joan Kelley Walker and Electronica AI founder and CEO Aristotle Andrulakis partnered for the donation with Operation Ramzieh, which is supporting vulnerable seniors, neighborhoods, organizations, charities, families and shelters impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic.
“I believe we share the globe communally, and with that comes great responsibility. I am deeply inspired by this. It takes a village, “ Kelley Walker said in a news release.
Neighbourhood Network connected Kelley Walker with Abuse Hurts, which is one of its partner agencies.
"It was a really wonderful donation," said Neighbourhood Network manager Erin Cerenizia, who helped make the delivery yesterday. "As well as the food, there were flowers, chocolates, shortbread cookies and a special Mother's Day gift."
Abuse Hurts volunteers delivered the food boxes and gifts to local shelters yesterday and today, Cerenzia said, including Belinda's Place, Blue Door, Yellow Brick House and Sandgate.
Operation Ramzieh, initially launched in Ottawa by The DreamMind Group president and restaurateur Abbid Mahmoud, has delivered more than 7,000 packaged boxes of food and care products throughout the GTA with the support of donations and crowdfunding of more than $100,000.
With the assistance of hundreds of volunteers, the relief effort is assembling food boxes and other essential items purchased at cost for delivery to those in need.
