Funds from the Heart fundraiser, in collaboration with IGA, raises $210,000 for cardiovascular health

May 17, 2022
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The Montreal Heart Institute Foundation (MHIF) and the Quebec Heart and Lung Institute Foundation (IUCPQ), in collaboration with IGA, announce that the Funds from the Heart fundraiser has ended with $210,000 raised.

Held from April 7 to 27 in nearly 300 IGA supermarkets across Quebec, the campaign invited customers to make a $2 or more donation at the checkout. They were given an apple as a token of appreciation for their support, courtesy of Superfresh Growers. This symbolic gesture was aimed at encouraging Quebecers to adopt healthy eating habits and promote good cardiovascular health.

Since 1983, this campaign has raised over $9 million for cardiovascular health. The funds raised will support innovative prevention projects within the two foundations this year. These include the Montreal Heart Institute’s Prevention Watch, an information platform maintained by Dr. Martin Juneau, Cardiologist and Director of Prevention at the MHI, and his team that promotes cardiovascular health and healthy lifestyles. The funds will also support a number of priority projects at the IUCPQ, especially the prevention and healthy lifestyle programs run by the Pavillon de prévention des maladies cardiovasculaires (PPMC).

“Once again, merchants and their customers have come together to support the cause of cardiovascular health,” said Alain Gignac, President and CEO of the MHIF. “Thanks to their generosity, the Montreal Heart Institute is able to invest in helping Quebecers adopt a healthy lifestyle and reduce their risk of developing cardiovascular disease.”

“We are very pleased with the customers’ generosity and the merchants’ significant participation, which helped make this campaign successful. The close collaboration of our two foundations will make a difference for all Quebecers,” said Josée Giguère, Executive Director of the IUCPQ Foundation.

“Helping to fight cardiovascular disease through healthy eating is very close to our hearts at IGA. We are proud to witness, once again, the commitment of our customers and our community who responded to the call. Their contribution will help support major cardiology projects led by the Montreal Heart Institute Foundation and the Quebec Heart and Lung Institute Foundation. None of this would be possible without the mobilization of some 300 IGA merchants. I warmly thank them for their invaluable support of this cause over the past 38 years,” said Caroline Duhamel, Marketing Director at IGA.

About the Montreal Heart Institute Foundation

Created in 1977, the Montreal Heart Institute Foundation raises and manages funds to support the realization of the Institute’s innovative and priority projects and to fight cardiovascular disease, the leading cause of death in the world. Its philanthropic events and donors’ contributions have enabled this leader in cardiovascular health to become the largest cardiac research centre in the country. Over the years, the Montreal Heart Institute Foundation has raised more than $309 million in donations. Its 26,032 donors have made it possible to make important discoveries and support the Institute’s specialists, professionals, and researchers to provide state-of-the-art care to tens of thousands of patients in Quebec.

About the Quebec Heart and Lung Institute Foundation

The role of the IUCPQ Foundation is to promote and support the work of the Quebec Heart and Lung Institute – Université Laval, whose main mission is to improve the health of people with cardiovascular, respiratory, and obesity-related diseases. Over the past few years, the Foundation has provided more than $40 million in funding to purchase specialized equipment, research and teaching, and technology and health care assessment. Thanks to its international reputation, the Institute and its research centre play a leading role in the fight against major socioeconomic diseases while serving a population of more than 2.2 million people, mostly from central and eastern Quebec.

About IGA

IGA is the largest group of independent grocers in Canada, and its presence in Quebec dates to 1953. Nearly 300 IGA retailers in Quebec and New Brunswick are constantly seeking new ways to serve their customers better. The IGA banner includes IGA, IGA extra, and IGA express stores. IGA is the only group of food retailers to offer consumers the opportunity to accumulate AIR MILES® reward miles.