Theatre Sarnia is hoping to keep the memory of a local man alive by "helping other people eat" through a food donation event.
The third annual Anthony's H.O.P.E., a campaign to support the Inn of the Good Shepherd, will take place on Saturday, outside of Imperial Theatre.
Anthony's H.O.P.E. was launched in honour of Anthony Fracalanza who died in May of 2020.
Organizer Kristen Lannan said Fracalanza worked at the Inn of the Good Shepherd and was an active member of Theatre Sarnia.
"He donated a lot of his time, even outside of his work hours," she said. "He was always about giving back to the community and putting himself last."
Lannan said over $4,000 was collected in monetary donations and about the same amount was collected in non-perishable items during the campaign's first year. The amount collected last year was lower so Lannan hopes they can collect about 6,000 pounds of food items this weekend.
For the first time, a silent auction was also held this year as part of Anthony's H.O.P.E. Bidding will close at 9 p.m. Friday.
"We thought we would try it out and see if we could generate more monetary donations for the Inn of the Good Shepherd," said Lannan. "We're hoping to get a few more bids in there before we end it."
For those interested in donating through Anthony's H.O.P.E. on Saturday, items the inn could use have been listed below.
- School snacks
- Juice boxes
- Large and small soups
- Canned fruit
- Canned pasta
- Hygiene products
- Laundry soap
- Dish soap
