CORNWALL, Ontario – Christal Bowen of Zumba with Christal wanted to support Sparky’s Toy Drive this year, but due to COVID-19, she had to find a different way to do it.
The pandemic has made things like in-person zumba workouts and in-person fundraisers difficult, but Bowen found a way to innovate and still do both.
With the help of her wife Val, Bowen moved her Zumba classes online and decided, starting on Dec. 1, every time someone joined one of her virtual classes, she would set aside one dollar to go towards buying toys for Sparky.
“If husbands joined, it was $5, because we really wanted to encourage the husbands to join in too,” she said.
Bowen said she has had great attendance over the course of the month, including one class where Sparky himself took part. As of Dec. 17, Bowen had set aside $1,000 to buy toys for Sparky’s Toy Drive.
Bowen chose to buy the toys from Cornwall’s downtown toy store, Kid’s Korner.
“It is all about being able to give back to the community and keeping things local,” Bowen said. “You’ve got to keep the positive energy going.”
On Dec. 17, Bowen presented the cheque to Sparky at Kid’s Korner, who already had a wall of toys ready for him to collect for girls and boys.
