YMCA’s Centre for Life gets a boost from Belleville Sens and local Tim Horton’s

Smile Cookies were flying out the door at local Tim Horton’s restaurants last week, and Belleville Sens staff and mascot Belly were on hand last Friday morning to help decorate and sell them, in support of the YMCA of Central East Ontario’s soon-to-be-built Centre for Life.

The new facility on the former Belleville Fairgrounds property is slated to begin construction this year and is expected to cost nearly $30 million. Its new west-end facility will replace the aging YMCA in the city’s east end, with all proceeds from Smile Cookie sales in Belleville last week being directed to that project. The YMCA of Central East Ontario’s Centre for Life is expected to be completed in 2026.

“We always take great pride in our community initiatives, and we were truly excited to get Belly out to help spread the word about the Smile Cookie Campaign again this year, said Belleville Sens VP of Business Operations John Mathers. “Not only are we showing that our club is committed to Belleville and the Bay of Quinte year-round, but this year, we’re also supporting a vital new facility that will benefit kids and families in the Quinte Region for years to come.”

And the Senators’ support didn’t go unnoticed on Friday. Fans, young and old, flocked to the Bridge Street West location (right across the street from where the Centre for Life will be built), greeting Belly with smiles and cheers, and grabbing dozens of boxes of Smile Cookies to support the cause. Bridge Street West Tim Horton’s Manager Danielle Hartin says the entire campaign, which wrapped up this past Sunday, was great. She added taht having the Belleville Sens support helped to push their donations higher through the campaign’s final days.

“We’ve sold lots of cookies! As of Thursday we were number one in Belleville and number six in our region,” said Hartin. “It was awesome to have Belly here, he did great keeping up the energy and mingling with the students from Centennial Secondary School and other customers. I think having the Senators and other community members get involved just shows that we’re all united for one cause and having Belly be the face of that was awesome.”

And it wasn’t just Belleville Tim’s restaurants that were kicking-in for a good cause last week. Funds raised through Smile Cookie sales in Quinte West will benefit Hospice Quinte, while those sold in Madoc and Marmora will see money directed to the Hastings & Prince Edward Learning Foundation.

Totals raised are expected to be announced in the next week or so.

Belly’s Community Crew will be popping up at events across the Bay of Quinte all summer long, so keep an eye on the club’s social media cahannels (@BellevilleSens) to find out where they’ll be next. If you’d like to have Belly’s Community Crew at your summer event, you can find the event request form on the Belleville Sens Community Page.

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