SUDBURY -- With more than 5,500 bottles collected from across Sudbury, organizers of a fundraiser in support of the Sudbury Food Bank are overwhelmed by the response from residents.

Dubbed the 'We The Bury' bottle drive campaign, organizers are still collecting empties even though they have already exceeded their fundraising goal.

It wasn't the reaction that Curtis Loiselle and Ashlie Wainman anticipated when they decided to launch the campaign: within 24 hours the couple realized they'd be giving back more than they anticipated.

"The funny thing is, I was being a little conservative and said, 'Oh, I want to raise $250,' " said Loiselle. "Ashlie said, 'well, lets go for $500.' And the first day we were over $700. It was crazy."

The idea came to life one evening when the pair was looking for a way to give back during the COVID-19 pandemic. 

"We know a lot of people are struggling right now - it's something that we're not used too," said Loiselle. "We had a little bit of time to give back and we thought why not (help) those that are less fortunate than we are. It feels good to give back and help some families who maybe need some support and obviously the food bank needs that support, as well." 

The two-week bottle drive, which wraps up Saturday, gained a lot of attention across Sudbury. Several residents have reached out with donations and local companies have also joined the initiative, including Canada Post, which donated trucks and staff time to help out.

"It feels really good," Wainman said. "The support that we're receiving from everybody is overwhelming … It's unbelievable. We didn't think it would be this big." 

"Things have been so hectic, we haven't even had time to breathe," Loiselle added. "The response has been so overwhelming in a positive way. Everybody is reaching out. We're spending hours and hours just trying to catch up to emails and messages." 

We The Bury has a team of six volunteers who helped collect donations through curbside pick up across the city, as well as sort and count them before they go to the beer store. 

"It's just brought us all closer together," said Loiselle. 

All proceeds will be going to the Sudbury Food Bank. People can also donate through We The Bury's Facebook page. 

"Nobody envisioned a bottle drive coming up with this kind of impact on the community," said Dan Xilon, of the Sudbury Food Bank. "But I got to tell you, people are just so behind this and they're so excited by it." 

Xilon says the food bank has received a lot of support during the pandemic. While they're doing OK, every dollar helps. He adds that for every $1 donated, the food bank is able to buy $6 worth of food. 

"Hats off to both of them for coming up with this great idea and all their partners," Xilon said. 

We The Bury hopes to raise more than $10,000 by Saturday night, when they will stop taking donations. 

Anyone interested in donating empty bottles can email loiselle27@gmail.com or through messenger on the We The Bury Facebook page.

Correction:

There was a typo in the group's contact email in the original version of the story and has now been corrected.