Couple uses shopping spree win to stock up groceries for Calgary Food Bank
The food bank says their generosity went above and beyond
As any Supermarket Sweep contestant could tell you, 50 seconds isn't a lot of time when you're burning rubber on the wheels of a shopping cart.
But a couple who won a grocery shopping spree were motivated to go as quickly as they could on Saturday, because they weren't filling their own pantry.
Chantal Leroux and her partner Ryan Warren won a contest to grab as many items, up to $500, as they could in 50 seconds from Bragg Creek Foods.
"We were really excited to receive the call," said Leroux. "I immediately envisioned grabbing all sorts of things for my own cupboard and then after I reflected a couple seconds later, I thought what a great opportunity to be able to give back."
Leroux said she works in the social services industry, so she sees how much the food bank helps her clients.
And Warren was immediately on board.
"We came in with a plan," he said. "Because we're donating it all to the food bank we knew it had to be non-perishable."
WATCH Ryan Warren grab nearly $600 worth of groceries in less than a minute:
Warren was out of breath when the time was up, but it paid off — he tossed $598 of goods like canned tomatoes, diapers and coffee into the carts. And The Grocery People, the company behind the contest, agreed to donate the full amount of groceries.
But Warren wasn't done. He also reached out to local companies to collect $1,500 for the food bank, and presented them with the cheque along with the groceries.
Avaleen Streeton of the Calgary Food Bank said they were blown away by not just the couple's decision to donate, but that they would go above and beyond their win to raise the extra money.
"It's absolutely phenomenal," she said.
With files from Helen Pike