'Lowe's Heroes' raising funds to fix Genevra House

If you're visiting Lowe's this week, you might consider forking over an extra toonie to help YWCA Genevra House do some much-needed repairs.

Until April 3, the home improvement store is selling tags for $2 in benefit of the local agency.

Funds raised up to $2,000 will be matched by head office. As of last week, the store had raised about $1,600 through tag sales and employee initiatives such as a bake sale and 50-50 draws.

The fundraising is under the banner of the Lowe's Heroes program, which will also see Lowe's employees volunteering their time to help with the renovations at YWCA Genevra House.

“It's really great to see a company put forward an effort to help our community,” said Marlene Gorman, executive director of YWCA Sudbury.

“We're really grateful to the employees here who are asking their customers to donate $2 to buy a tag. We're also grateful to the people who are shopping at Lowe's and donating towards this cause.”

YWCA Genevra House, a 32-bed shelter for women and children escaping intimate partner abuse, is just under a decade old, and is heavily used, serving close to 400 women and children every year.

Like any facility, it requires maintenance, which can be costly. One quote put the pricetag to paint the facility at $20,000, Gorman said, which is why the store's help is much appreciated.

She said the store plans to do some painting and install new blinds, among other small renovations.

Karen Piquette, the department manager of flooring at the Sudbury Lowe's, said she and her coworkers are happy to help, as YWCA Genevra House does great work.

“The store is really getting involved with this initiative,” she said.

“We're really excited. We're hoping to raise enough funds to help them with what they need. We've had a lot of great feedback from our customers about supporting such a great facility.”