After finding out she’d be losing her job, shopper gets holiday gift of free groceries
Candice Gagnon started the week on the wrong foot.
The Amherstburg resident was working at an e-commerce company in Windsor and thought it was her forever job. That dream came to a crashing halt Monday when she received an email explaining the company was closing down for good.
“As soon as I went to grab everything I was like 'I need to do something that will make me happy and I need to get something for dinner,'” said Gagnon who drove to Fred’s Farm Fresh on her way home.
“The universe was telling me I needed to be there at that very moment,” she explained. “As soon as I got into the parking lot I started bawling my eyes out. I’m like, 'how am I going to pay for this? How am I going to pay for Christmas? I have bills. I have a little guy at home. What am I going to do?’”
Gagnon gathered her strength and entered the store. Her plan was to pick up sausages and leave but once at the deli counter she was approached by Jonny Parks, co-host of the morning show on 93.9 Virgin Radio.
“I came up and said ‘hey, you know, we're starting this new thing Holiday Hook-Up. We wanna pay for your bill today,’” Parks explained.
Gagnon continued with what Parks told her, “’fill up your cart. Get everything that you need. I’m paying for it.’ I’m like 'why?' and I started crying.”
So did Parks.
“I start crying cause I’m like, ‘I wasn't expecting this first right out of the gate,’” he said.
Upon checking out Gagnon was greeted by Jonny's co-host Hannah Witherbee.
“Do you want a hug?” Witherbee offered Gagnon. “That's all I could do say ‘can I hug you’ because I was like ‘oh, I’m so sorry but also I’m so glad we could help you in a meaningful way.’”
Jonny and Hannah took their Holiday Hook-Up around town supporting local businesses Tuesday giving away gift cards. They donated a thousand dollars to St. Vincent De Paul Wednesday afternoon.
Instead of giving away prizes the team at Virgin Radio decided to help the community in a thoughtful way. “We realized, especially after the last two and a half years of not being together that being together is the real gift we could give everybody at Christmas time.” Said J. Stevens, regional program director for Virgin Radio.
The gesture made her day and Gagnon plans on paying it forward when she lands on her feet.
“I was even saying to Jonny that I don't believe in Christmas magic or miracles but obviously I do now,” she said.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Grandparent scam: London, Ont., senior beats fraudsters not once, but twice
It was a typical Tuesday for Mabel Beharrell, 84, until she got the call that would turn her world upside down. Her teenaged grandson was in trouble and needed her help.
Deaths of 4 people on Sask. farm confirmed as murder-suicide
The deaths of four people on a farm near the Saskatchewan village of Neudorf have been confirmed a murder-suicide.
CRA no longer requiring 'bare trust' reporting in 2023 tax return
The Canada Revenue Agency announced Thursday it will not require 'bare trust' reporting from Canadians that it introduced for the 2024 tax season, just four days before the April 2 deadline.
Full parole granted to man convicted in notorious 'McDonald's murders' in Cape Breton
The Parole Board of Canada has granted full parole to one of three men convicted in the brutal murders of three McDonald's restaurant workers in Cape Breton more than 30 years ago.
Incident on Calgary's Reconciliation Bridge comes to safe resolution
Nearly 20 hours after a man climbed and remained perched on top of the Reconciliation Bridge in downtown Calgary, the situation came to a peaceful resolution.
Sunshine list: These were the Ontario public sector's highest earners in 2023
Ontario released its annual sunshine list Thursday afternoon, noting that the largest year-over-year increases were in hospitals, municipalities, and post-secondary sectors.
George Washington family secrets revealed by DNA from unmarked 19th century graves
Genetic analysis has shed light on a long-standing mystery surrounding the fates of U.S. President George Washington's younger brother Samuel and his kin.
'We won't forget': How some Muslims view Poilievre's stance on Israel-Hamas war
A spokesman for a regional Muslim advocacy group says Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre's stance on the Israel-Hamas war could complicate his party's relationship with Muslim Canadians.
Why some Christians are angry about Trump's 'God Bless the USA' Bible
Former U.S. President Donald Trump is officially selling a copy of the Bible themed to Lee Greenwood’s famous song, 'God Bless the USA.' But the concept of a Bible covered in the American flag has raised concern among religious circles.