The Shawville Giant Tiger recently donated $3,500 to the McDowell Elementary School Home and School committee, which will be given directly to the school’s breakfast club so it can continue to feed the increasing number of children being signed up for the program.

“The breakfast club was having a hard time being able to fund all the extra students. The enrollment rates this year were quite a bit higher than they normally are,” said Chelsea Laframboise, vice-president of the committee.

“The breakfast club isn’t necessarily for people who are underprivileged [ . . . ] But the school did notice there’s a lot more people who weren’t able to give the [$75] donation like they used to.”

Laframboise said the school approached the Home and School committee for support, which then reached out to Giant Tiger to see whether the store could offer any help.

And Giant Tiger owner Brandyn Gauthier didn’t think twice.

After two weeks of soliciting donations for the breakfast program at the store’s checkout, Giant Tiger raised nearly the full amount needed by the school, and topped it up with $150 to hit the $3,500 mark.

“It is important that every child learns on a full stomach,” Gauthier said. “The work this organization puts in to making sure this happens is a great example of doing what is right in our community.”