The head of Grupo Os Mosqueteiros, which owns the Intermarché brand of supermarkets in Portugal, delivered a fat cheque to the Refúgio Boim Ascensão* in Faro yesterday.
The €15,000 donation was the result of the ‘votes for happy holidays’ promotion that ran over the Christmas and New Year period. Shoppers were asked to send their good wishes to four institutions, among them the Refúgio Aboim Ascensão.
These 'good wish' votes were transformed into financial support, guaranteeing a better financial year for the institutions involved which include Associação Acreditar, Comunidade Vida e Paz and the Liga Portuguesa dos Direitos do Animal.
"This project has filled us with pride. Pride for being part of a group that has strong values of solidarity which it practices day to day," said the supermarket chief, adding,
“We asked the Portuguese to wish happy holidays to the institutions of their choice and we turn those wishes into financial support, so that these institutions in 2019 can move forward with their projects.
“We want to give back to the local community and society in general what it brings us. It was this wish of giving back that led us to create the initiative," said João Magalhães, the head of Grupo Os Mosqueteiros.
* Refugio Aboim Ascensão is a private internationally recognized non-profit Christian Charity organization working to better the lives of abused, abandoned and neglected children under the age of six.
