An art gallery owner in Black Diamond is amazed at the generosity of people when they are given an opportunity to support a local cause. Terra Cotta Gallery manager Mady Thiel-Kopstein wraps a gift for Millarville resident Patty Webb on Dec. 22. The gallery offered gift wrapping in exchange for a $5 donation to the Oilfields Food Bank and raised $1,200. photo submitted

Evonne Smulders, who owns Terra Cotta Gallery, decided to offer gift-wrapping service in exchange for a donation to the local food bank on Dec. 19. At the end of the day, the donations tallied up to $1,200.

“People are incredibly generous,” said Smulders. “One customer (who lives in the community) had a gift wrapped and donated $500 and it was a small gift, too,” said Smulders.

Being able to host a fundraising event was a pleasure, Smulders said, and it was easy to do.

“I guess the message I really want to get out is that if everybody did one little thing, it would add up to one big thing,” said Smulders. “It’s hard to do a big thing, for example, a big fundraising event. People are so busy. So if every business did something simple, like put a piggybank out or offer a service in donation for a charity, the money we could raise (as a community) could be pretty substantial.

“It’s so much easier to do a little event.”

It was really feeling like Christmas in the gallery for Smulders and gallery manager Mady Thiel-Kopstein during the fundraiser. With customers buying locally and supporting local artists and then turning around and making a donation to the Oilfields Food Bank, it put a spring in their step.

“You should have seen us, it was like we were dancing in the store,” said Smulders. “With everybody (all the charities) donations are down and the food bank’s needs are up. So we put it out to our customers and they came through — they’re the best customers in the whole world. And a lot were locals.

“We were so happy.”

tneely@okotoks.greatwest.ca

0 Recommend This Post

 Email This Post  Print This Post