(Image Credit: CFJC News)

By Sydney Chisholm

shopping spree

Kamloops man goes on frenzied, 5-minute grocery shopping spree to support RIH Foundation

Nov 8, 2024 | 6:00 PM

KAMLOOPS – It was almost a scene out of the TV show, ‘Supermarket Sweep.’

Kamloops’ Cody Skene raced against the clock at Fresh Street Market on Friday (Nov. 8) — dashing through the aisles as his family and store staff cheered him on. Skene wasn’t just on a regular grocery run – he was the lucky winner of a five-minute, $1,000 shopping spree.

“It was pretty good. I thought I had the route mapped out pretty good, but when it got to last minute, I realized I was really short on food,” said Skene. “I just started piling things into the cart as fast as I could to get up to the thousand bucks.”

This spree was more than just a lucky break. It was the result of Skene’s generous bid in an auction at the Royal Inland Hospital Foundation’s (RIHF) fundraising gala that took place on Sept. 21.

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According to Heidi Coleman, CEO of RIHF, all the proceeds collected from the gala’s ticket sales and auction goes toward new equipment for RIH.

“We have a very large equipment list,” said Coleman. “We’ll be looking at ultrasounds, things for our new [operating room], which is our hybrid O.R. so we’re just going to use the funds to purchase much-needed equipment.”

The Royal Inland Hospital Foundation has been a cornerstone of healthcare support in the region, serving more than 225,000 British Columbians. Because of this, the local grocery store was eager to participate.

“It’s a hospital, it’s a community spirit thing. We all need it at times.,” said Glen Hyokki, Fresh Street Market store leader. “It’s a wonderful thing to participate in. Great for the community, great for the store, great for the staff to be part of it.”

At the end of the five minutes, Skene’s cart was overflowing with groceries but he was still $100 away from his limit.

“His little son was in here. He helped throw a couple things into the basket,” said Hyokki. “[Skene] fell a little bit shy of the dollar value, so we gave him a hand in topping it up to make sure they got looked after.”