Caledon Special Olympics promotes Tim Hortons Special Olympics donuts

February 5, 2026 · 0 Comments

By Riley Murphy

Local Journalism Initiative Reporter

This weekend, if you stopped by your local Tim Hortons, you may have noticed a few Caledon Special Olympics athletes there as well.

From January 30 to February 1, Special Olympics Canada partnered with Tim Hortons to create the Special Olympics Donut, where, upon purchase that weekend, one hundred per cent of proceeds from donut sales went directly to Special Olympics programs.

Caledon Special Olympics was on site to promote the partnership and raise funds for their own programs.

Athlete Representative for Caledon Special Olympics, Jason Scorcia, was in Downtown Bolton with Athlete Brooklynn Belcher, and they shared that people had been coming to support Caledon Special Olympics all morning.

Caledon Special Olympics began their partnership with local Tim Hortons from the very beginning when Tim Hortons and Special Olympics across the country began their partnership in 2016.

Down the road at another local Tim Hortons, there were more Special Olympic Athletes ready and waiting with their own boxes of donuts.

Diana Vanelli looked on as her kids, both athletes with Caledon Special Olympics, helped with the fundraiser.

For Vanelli, she says fundraising for Special Olympics and their programs is extremely important.

Since joining Caledon Special Olympics, she says not only has she seen her children come out of their shells, but they have also been presented with so many opportunities they hadn’t had before.

“As a mother it’s so worth it,” says Vanelli, adding that her kids are in sports and activities every single day.

“This is their chance to build their social skills with people who are like-minded,” says Vanelli. “It’s like a family.”

She explains that without these programs, she would be worried about her kids stuck in front of screens; instead, every day they’re presented with new activities, sports, and connections.

Vanelli and her family live here in Bolton, and throughout the day, her children saw their classmates, teachers, and even their principals came through the Tim Hortons door to pick up their own Special Olympics Donut.

She says it was great to see them so supported in their own community.

Vanelli says she’s “so happy” to have found Caledon Special Olympics for her children, where they are given opportunities to excel and someday could even go to the Provincial, National and World Games.