SAINT JOHN—Irving Oil will donate another $110,000 to further help Atlantic Canadian families of sick children as part of its Fuel the Care program. 

 

Since its inception in 2002 Fuel the Care has provided over $850,000 in gift certificates, assisting over 10,000 children and their families in Atlantic Canada and New England.

 

Fuel the Care helps pay for a family’s fuel costs when they drive between home and hospital for their children’s medical care.   Children benefiting from the program also receive a stuffed ladybug character known as “Ellie” to keep them company as they travel to and from the hospital.

 

“We are proud to continue our partnership with the IWK Health Centre in Halifax, the Janeway Children’s Health and Rehabilitation Centre in St. John’s and the Saint John Regional Hospital to help sick children throughout Atlantic Canada,” said David Adams, Retail Operations Manager for Eastern Canada. “When children need important medical treatments, it is a stressful time for the whole family. Through Fuel the Care, we are trying to ease some of that burden and allow parents to focus more on their child.”

 

For many Atlantic Canadian children, a trip to a partner hospital means their families must travel long distances to seek treatment for serious illnesses such as cancer, heart disease, diabetes, cystic fibrosis and asthma.

 

“We are very pleased to be a part of Irving’s Fuel the Care program,” said Stefan Mildenberger, Social Work Department Head with the Saint John Regional Hospital.   “Each year, the Saint John Regional Hospital treats children from all over New Brunswick, with over 1,500 admissions to the hospital (Paediatrics and Neonatal) and 8,000 ambulatory visits. Irving’s Fuel the Care program will help ease the financial burden of commuting to hospital so families can be together.”

The assistance to families comes in the form of Fuel the Care gift certificates issued by participating hospitals to eligible families during what can be a stressful financial time. The gift certificates can then be redeemed at area Bluecanoe, Mainway and Big Stop locations for fuel. 

 

Irving Oil also makes annual donations to the IWK and Janeway children’s hospitals, as well as children’s hospitals in New England, for research on childhood diseases such as Marfan Syndrome (a condition that affects connective tissue, Hystiocytosis (a rare blood disease), childhood epilepsy and childhood cancers. To date, more than $220,000 has been donated to research for childhood diseases.

Parents of children being treated at one of the following hospitals who would like more information about how to qualify for assistance from Irving’s Fuel the Care program, please call:

Founded in 1924, Irving Oil is the regional refining and marketing company serving customers in Eastern Canada, Quebec, and New England with a range of finished energy products, including gasoline, diesel, home heating fuel, jet fuel and complementary products and services. The company's network of Bluecanoe and Mainway convenience stores throughout Eastern Canada and New England offers customers a wide variety of products and services, including grocery and snack items, bakeries and convenience items, in addition to fuel. In 2003, Irving Oil became the first oil company to win a USEPA Clean Air Excellence award for its low-sulphur gasoline. 

 

For more information about Irving Oil, visit www.irvingoil.com.

 

Jennifer Parker

 (506) 202-2992