There were smiles all around as staff from Kelowna Tim Hortons locations joined the employees of JoeAnna's House on the afternoon of Nov. 14 to celebrate putting together the final touches on the upcoming Smile Week event.
Local branches of the Canadian coffee chain will be selling smile cookies from Nov. 18-24 to raise funds for JoeAnna's House, a place offering short-term stays for families with loved ones admitted to Kelowna General Hospital.
JoeAnna's House Director Darlene Haslock said this is the second year they've been chosen as the beneficiary.
The organization charges families $25 per night for a room. "It cost us about $89 a night per room, so to receive a donation of almost $18,000 is just incredible," Haslock said of the fundraiser last year.
JoeAnna's House is also gearing up for an expansion from 20 to 30 rooms.
"We are needing to raise $5.3 million, so this is just the start of it."
Smile cookies will be available at participating Tim Hortons locations in Kelowna for $1.50 plus tax.
Learn more about the Smile Cookie event and JoeAnna's House at .