Volunteers from Living Sky School Division decorate the famous Smile Cookies. (File Photo/Living Sky School Division)

By Julia Lovett-Squires

Smile Cookie

A cookie’s worth of smiles: Annual campaign kicks off in the Battlefords and Meadow Lake

Apr 28, 2025 | 4:33 PM

A cookie with a big blue and pink happy face is bringing smiles to the students at Living Sky School Division.

“We are really excited to be teaming up with local Tim Hortons here in the Battlefords and in Meadow Lake,” said Tonya Lehman, deputy director, adding that 100 per cent of proceeds will be going to LSKY’s Innovation Fund’s Support Dollars.

From April 28 to May 4, communities across Canada are invited to show their support for local organizations and charities since the annual tradition began in Hamilton, ON to support of McMaster Children’s Hospital 29 years ago.

“The first day is always a little bit hectic, trying to get everybody organized and we definitely a lot busier than we thought,” said Marion Michnik, Tim Hortons franchisee owner of the Battleford and Railway Avenue locations.

“It’s great because we have a lot of volunteers from Living Sky that come out and help decorate the cookies,” she said.

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This year, along with the sweet treats, people can also pick up cute and squishy plush toys for $5.

“It has four different smile emojis on the plushy so yeah, it’s great that we have something new to add to it,” she said.

The Innovation Fund will focus on three areas that we try to access more dollars to help support things that are not normally covered in local budgets including early learning, holistic wellbeing (nutrition, extracurricular activities) and inspired education (culturally relevant and meaningful education).

“When we look at these funds, we look at how can we promote and support innovative projects that people have that we use those dollars for that really are those things that draw kids in and really give them an excellent opportunity beyond the classroom,” Lehman said.

Last year, the campaign, which supports roughly 600 organizations country-wide, locally raised just shy of $22,000 for communication boards to help non-verbal students to find their voice on the playground and the director believes this year will be even more successful.

“Hopefully the sky is the limit on this,” she said.

In keeping with the smile theme of the week, Michnik said the Tim’s teams are in good spirits and excited to take a break from their uniforms.

“The T-shirts are always a fun way of making our day that much more colourful and fun,” she said.

“It’s just all around a good atmosphere…definitely with the volunteers, I can’t stress that enough, it just goes a lot further,” Michnik added of the decorating and packaging duties they’re responsible for that helps to lessen the load of the team.

Of the community’s support last year, Lehman said they were “so pleased” with the response from the Battlefords and Meadow Lake.

“We’re hoping to see a similar result this year.”

While the campaign has only just begun, it is off to a solid start.

“Everyone’s happy and the sun is shining so that makes it a lot better,” said the franchisee.

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julia.lovettsquires@pattisonmedia.com

On BlueSky: juleslovett.bsky.social