It’s a tasty way to help families dealing with food insecurity in local communities.
The United Way is launching an initiative called NovemBurger. Guelph Wellington Dufferin and Waterloo Region are two of the nine chapters across Ontario that are taking part in this special fundraiser.
The official kickoff took place on Friday at Borealis in Guelph and Kitchener.
While it is the first year of the event in the two communities, the roots of NovemBurger go back to 2019.
“The United Way in Thunder Bay has been doing this for five years and it has been a successful initiative,” said Glenna Banda, executive director of United Way Guelph Wellington Dufferin.
The goal of NovemBurger is to raise money for United Way in supporting local programs that help families who are dealing with food insecurity.
“It supports our great organizations that we partner with that work to provide important food to people that need it,” she said.
Fourteen restaurants in the Guelph Wellington Dufferin area and 13 in Waterloo Region are participating in NovemBurger. Each eatery is offering a special burger for the event with $2 from each sale going to the United Way.
“They are small businesses who are very busy. So for them to take the time and develop something unique like this, we are very grateful for that,” said Banda.
Each community will have a panel of ambassadors that will serve as judges in the event. They include Guelph mayor Cam Guthrie, as well as Anthony Lee of the KW Titans. Magic 106’s Lisa Richards, Darryl Law and Simon McGhee of 107.5 Dave Rocks, and Scott Fox and Joey Castillo of 91.5 The Beat will also serve as ambassadors for the event.
Local realtors Ryan and Beth Waller will also be judging the burgers in Guelph Wellington Dufferin. For them, it is natural to go out to local restaurants and feast on some of their dishes.
“We know some of the burgers they have,” said Ryan Waller. “But these are all new formulations they created just for this and we can’t wait to try them out.”
Beth Waller added: “We always try and prioritize to support local.”
While most of the burgers that will be featured during NovemBurger will be made with beef, there are some that will have different types of meat or no meat at all.
“There are couple that feature wild boar, there is one that is water buffalo, and there are some restaurants that will offer a vegetarian option,” said Banda.
There will be three awards up for grabs: NovemBurger of the Year which voted on by NovemBurger ambassadors , Most NovemBurgers Sold, and the People’s Choice NovemBurgers, which is voted on by the people.
Details on NovemBurger can be found by going to the websites of the United Way Guelph Wellington Dufferin or United Way Waterloo Region.