February 25, 2016

IMAGINE 2016 Fundraiser

imagine fundraiser I was invited to participate in a fundraising event from the SHARE Family and Community Services Society, the largest social service provider in the Tri-Cities (Coquitlam, Port Coquitlam, and Port Moody). Their annual fundraising event, IMAGINE, takes place Saturday, March 5 and I’m participating as a judge for the Best Sweet and Best Savoury submissions from 8 Restaurants and Caterers. The main event, the Hamper Challenge is a Master Chef-inspired cooking competition in which local chefs will be paired with local mayors to prepare two-course meals from SHARE food bank hampers. If you are a Food Network fan like me, than this will be your jam!

This competition aims to bring attention to the challenges their clients face making nutritious and tasty meals when relying on food bank hampers to feed themselves and their families. Majority of us are fortunate where if hunger strikes, we can just eat what is at hand in our homes or grab a bite to eat at a local restaurant. But for some, this is not a reality. This may be a fun evening, but it is all about bringing awareness to SHARE and their programs.

What is SHARE?

Distributing out of three locations, the SHARE Food Bank serves over 5,000 people annually.
35 per cent of SHARE Food Bank users are under the age of 19.
Food Banks receive no government funding so, SHARE relies entirely on the generosity of the community: individuals, businesses, associations, sports teams, churches, and community granting agencies, among others.
Last year, SHARE distributed close to 19,000 food bank hampers and 650,000 pounds of food with a retail value of more than $1.6 million.
Food Bank clients can use SHARE services twice per month and the food they
receive is of supplementary assistance. It would last a family three or four days and
enable them to save money they can put towards rent, gas, or other life expenses.

So come on out to the Hard Rock Casino Vancouver Theatre in Coquitlam on March 5, at 7:00 pm and enjoy an evening filled with great food, fun people like me!, live entertainment and music, auctions, raffle prizes, dancing and more! Tickets are $85 each, which includes the opportunity to sample the best sweets and savouries on offer from the region’s best restaurants!

Last year, IMAGINE raised over $105,000, enabling SHARE to deliver vital programs and services to over 56,000 Tri-Cities community residents.

For more information or to purchase tickets, visit sharesociety.ca/imagine or call 604-529-5105.

IMAGINE 2016 Food Blogger Judges

The five of us are an all female judging panel! The first for this event!

Emily – http://wellfedflatbroke.com/

Diana – http://foodology.ca/

Dee – http://gastrofork.ca/

Alicia – http://www.bakeaholic.ca/

Win Tickets!

Thanks to SHARE, I am giving away two tickets to this event worth $170! You can enter the raffle below to win two tickets to this fun event. The tickets will be available at will call on March 5. The raffle will close at midnight on March 3.

If you can’t attend, but still want to support IMAGINE 2016, you can donate online.

CONGRATS TINA LEE! You are the winner of two tickets!

a Rafflecopter giveaway