Shoppers Drug Mart kicks off Tree of Life fundraising campaign

EDMONTON, Canada Shoppers Drug Mart on Thursday kicked off its sixth annual Tree of Life fundraising campaign for community health charities and a special Tree of Life apple-scented body lotion.

The campaign, which runs from Sept. 22 through Oct. 19, encourages customers to purchase and personalize their own paper “leaf” for a loonie (the nickname Canadians gave its gold-colored, bronze-plated, one-dollar coin), “maple leaf” for $5 or an “apple” for $50. Each “leaf” is then attached to a “tree” branch in a Shoppers Drug Mart store to help raise money.

“The Tree of Life campaign is the cornerstone of our community investment program,” stated Lisa Gibbs, manager, community investment, Shoppers Drug Mart. “Through this program, our customers, employees and pharmacist/owners across the country partner with local charities and give back to the communities in which they work and live.”

Proceeds from fruit and foliage, along with sales of the body lotion, will be split with 75 percent going to local community-based healthcare organizations and 25 percent going to national healthcare charities supporting treatment, awareness, education and research initiatives.

Since 2002, Shoppers Drug Mart has raised more than $7 million for over 250 Canadian healthcare charities such as Heart & Stroke Foundation, Ovarian Cancer Canada, Canadian Psychiatric Research Foundation and Prostate Cancer Research Foundation, among others through its Tree of Life campaign, held each autumn.

This year, as an additional incentive, Shoppers Drug Mart Optimum cardholders have a chance to win a grand prize of one million Optimum points when they purchase a leaf, a maple leaf or an apple. The apple-scented body lotion retails for $1.99.