The Sofina Foundation's Dream Builders' Campaign Raises $194,501 for The Children's Wish Foundation

MARKHAM, ON, Feb. 9, 2016 /CNW/ - Fifteen critically ill children across Canada will now have their wishes granted thanks to the Sofina Foundation's Dream Builders' Campaign, which saw employees work together to raise money in support of The Children's Wish Foundation of Canada

Through a series of fundraising initiatives, employees throughout Sofina Foods' 21 locations generously raised $97,250.55, which was then matched, dollar-for-dollar by Sofina Foods Inc., bringing the total to $194,501.10. The original fundraising goal of the campaign, which wrapped-up in January, was $50,000.

"From day one, our employees rallied behind this cause," said Umeeda Madhany, head of the Sofina Foundation. "From planning the events, to donating their hard earned dollars, this campaign certainly would not have been possible without their support and generosity. Having seen, first hand, just how much these children and their families go through, I'm so thrilled that we were able to partner with The Children's Wish Foundation to grant these families their wishes."

This was the second year in a row that the Sofina Foundation's Dream Builders' Campaign raised money for The Children's Wish Foundation.

"We are extremely grateful for the ground swell of support from the Sofina Foundation Dream Builders' Campaign and their employees across Canada towards helping to bring more wishes to our children and their families," said Chris Kotsopoulos, CEO, The Children's Wish Foundation of Canada. "It is only through the generosity of caring companies like Sofina Foods that we can continue to grant wishes and provide hope and healing to Canadian families dealing with life threatening illnesses."

About Sofina Foods Inc.

Sofina Foods Inc. is a privately owned Canadian company headquartered in Markham, Ontario dedicated to providing great tasting, high quality food products for consumers. As one of the nation's leading manufacturers of primary and further processed protein products for both retail and foodservice customers, Sofina Foods has a broad portfolio of branded and private label pork, beef, turkey, and chicken products. Sofina's family of branded products consists of: Cuddy, Lilydale, Janes, Mastro, San Daniele, Fearmans Pork, Fletcher's, Vienna and Zamzam. Sofina Foods currently operates 18 HACCP-approved manufacturing facilities (17 in Canada and one in the northwestern United States), three hatcheries and has more than 4,600 employees. To learn more about Sofina Foods, please visit www.sofinafoods.com.

About the Sofina Foundation

The Sofina Foundation is the charitable arm of Sofina Foods Inc. Established in 2007 with a focus on supporting causes related to children's issues, we have proudly partnered with various charities across Canada and the U.S. with an aim to positively impact the communities in which we operate. To date, the Sofina Foundation has raised more than $3.2 million for children's causes and received its formal charitable status at the beginning of 2014.

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 more than 23,000 children and their families.

This year, the Children's Wish Foundation of Canada expects to grant over 1,000 new wishes across the country with the help of volunteers and generous donors; that is approximately three wishes each and every day, all year long. Each wish is the child's most heartfelt wish, and carefully structured to meet the particular needs of the child and their family.

Already this year, we are experiencing unprecedented increases of wish referrals through our strong medical community relationships for our wishes granted to children with life-threatening illnesses. Now more than ever, we are encouraging Canadians to donate and support The Children's Wish Foundation of Canada to help us continue to grant the next most heartfelt wish. Children's Wish is a national charity with chapters in every province and territory. Visit www.childrenswish.ca for more information and to donate.

SOURCE Sofina Foods Inc.

Umeeda Madhany, Sofina Foundation, 905-747-3333 ext. 2120, [email protected]; Anjie Dietrich, The Children's Wish Foundation, 647-725-6144 direct, [email protected]