Cheque Please! Restaurants serve up healthy donation

Local restaurateurs in Greater Sudbury served up a healthy donation to the pediatric centre at Health Sciences North last week.

For the second time this year, the 11-member Sudbury Hospitality Association of Restaurant Entrepreneurs (SHARE0 held another Localicious fundraiser recently, during which a portion of their sales go toward the NEO Kids pediatric outpatient centre.

The event raised $8,709, which was donated last week to the North Eastern Ontario Health Centre for Kids (NEO Kids) at Health Sciences North.

“The member restaurants of SHARE are excited to be a part of the NEO Kids campaign,” said Leslie Moutsatsos, owner of P& M’s Kouzzina and one of the members of SHARE, in a news release. “We are looking forward to our next edition of Localicious Winter Warmers starting Jan. 4.”

SHARE members include Apollo Restaurant and Tavern, Bella Vita Cucina, Di Gusto Pizza and Pasta Restaurant, Hardrock 42 Gastropub, M.I.C. Canadian Eatery and Whiskey Pub, Mr. Prime Rib, P & M’s Kouzzina, Pasta e Vino Ristorante, Verdicchio Ristorante/Enoteca, Teklenberg’s Seafood Restaurant and Tony V’s Pizza and Restaurant

SHARE’s first Localicious event this year saw $12,800 raised for NEO Kids, bringing the amount raised in 2015 to more than $21,000.

“We’re very thankful and grateful to each restaurant owner who took part in the Localicious Fall Harvest on behalf of NEO Kids,” said Dr. Sean Murray, a pediatrician and medical director of HSN’s Family and Child Program.

NEO Kids is Health Sciences North’s centre of excellence for children’s outpatient care. Located at the Ramsey Lake Health Centre, NEO Kids provides more than 20 specialized clinics and services to children from across northeastern Ontario. Each year, there are approximately 35,000 patient visits to NEO Kids.

Health Sciences North is proposing to expand NEO Kids by up to 40,000 square feet. The expansion will allow NEO Kids to both increase the capacity of its existing clinics, and provide new outpatient services for children across northeastern Ontario.