Vernon Jubilee Hospital staff hold up bottles of sanitizer donated by Okanagan Spirits Craft Distillery. From left to right: Jayne McDonald, Linda Barker, Shona O’Connor, Colleen Magee.
Image Credit: SUBMITTED / Okanagan Spirits Craft Distillery
April 24, 2020 - 3:35 PM
After starting its Flatten the Curve initiative a month ago, Okanagan Spirits has distributed over 25,000 bottles of sanitizer to frontline medical and essential service workers.
Given that Okanagan Spirits Craft Distillery is a small family distillery, this is no mean feat.
"When we first started this, we were told that the big players would have enough to sell within a week, or two weeks, definitely by three weeks," Okanagan Spirits representative Jeremie Dyck said. "We weren't expecting it to go on this long."
Bottles of sanitizer made and donated by Okanagan Spirits Craft Distillery are delivery to Kelowna General Hospital.
Image Credit: SUBMITTED / Okanagan Spirits Craft Distillery
Okanagan Spirits initially planned to hand out sanitizer to the general public March 25, but changed gears due to the overwhelming demand from frontline workers.
The family continues to do their best to get orders out to those who need sanitizer, but demand is high.
"It is tough, because we're trying to allocate," Dyck said, adding that frontline workers are still their first priority.
Staff at Vernon Jubilee Hospital receive a shipment of hand sanitizer from Okanagan Spirits Craft Distillery.
Image Credit: SUBMITTED / Okanagan Spirits Craft Distillery
Vernon Jubilee Hospital received 950 bottles on April 20, and staff there have already requested more. Not to mention worker at Kamloops Royal Inland Hospital which have requested 1,500 bottles, in addition to supplies for private clinics in the city.
As each 350 ml bottle costs the distillery $10 to produce, Okanagan Spirits launched their "Harness your Inner Superhero Initiative," which gives the public an opportunity purchase spirits and generate funds for sanitizer production.
The public can also donate to the initiative online, and their contribution will go towards sanitizer for frontline workers in the Okanagan.
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