Heartfelt giving

By Wendy Bird

On Valentine's Day, Boston Pizza will be cooking up heart-shaped pizzas to offer their guests something special and to help raise funds for charity. The pizzas will be offered exclusively on Feb. 14.

One dollar from the sale of each heart-shaped pizza will go to the Boston Pizza Foundation in support of its many charities, including the Heart and Stroke Foundation of Canada. This year marks the restaurant's 16th annual Valentine's Day fundraiser, which has raised more than $2.1 million dollars for charity.

In Greater Sudbury, the popular restaurant has exceeded company targets year after year, thanks to the generosity of patrons and staff.

"Last year we raised about $4,200," said Vanessa Hannah, general manager of the New Sudbury location.

"There's a few staff members here who do this for personal reasons. One of our senior servers has raised close to $800 just herself."

Additionally, for the last several days, the restaurant has been selling bright red Valentine hearts for $1. Purchasers are encouraged to write a special message on the heart, which is then be hung up in the restaurant. Already the walls are teeming with cheery heartfelt messages. Paper heart sales account for nearly 75 per cent of the campaign's fundraising total.

The fundraiser concludes Feb. 14, with the sale of the special heart-shaped pizzas. That's a night when "the whole restaurant is just hopping with activity," Hannah added.

Heart-shaped pizzas can be ordered for dine-in, take-out or delivery in any of its 23 pizza varieties. Across the country, Boston Pizza expects to make more than 50,000 pizzas this Valentine's Day.