As long as there have been kids, popping a coin into the slot and getting a tasty gumball in return has been a fun part of growing up.
And for Scott Boisvert and his wife, Erlinda, that has gone a step further. The Niagara couple craft their own unique gumball machines that are the next level with a glass container sitting atop a carved wood structure replete with ramps, escalators and more – pretty much a fancy means of getting the spherical treats into the hands and mouths of kids and kids at heart.
“We started doing this in 2007,” Boisvert said. “My father was really into woodworking.”
Seeing gumball machines all over, Boisvert said he had considered getting one for the family video store.
“My father said, I can make one for you,” Boisvert said.
And the rest, as is often said, is history.
Some 17 years later, Boisvert now makes the dispensers himself and one of them now resides in the foyer at Wellspring Niagara’s offices in Fonthill. Proceeds from the sales of the $1 gumballs go to Wellspring to help support the organization’s programming and support services for individuals and families living with cancer.
“The kids just love it,” Boisvert said.
One of the machines was installed at the Embassy Suites hotel in Niagara Falls at the suggestion of a neighbour of Boisvert’s who worked there. In the first month after it was installed, $875 had been brought in.
Proceeds from the machines are given to charity. Beneficiaries have included the SickKids Foundation and the March of Dimes as well as SPCAs and humane societies across Niagara.
Now Wellspring Niagara has been added to the list.
The connection with Wellspring came through Erlinda, who is a registered nurse at the Walker Family Cancer Centre at the Marotta Family Hospital in St. Catharines.
“There was someone we know who knew Erlinda,” said Jacqueline Ireland, Wellspring’s community engagement and events co-ordinator. “Then Erlinda came to me with the idea to put a machine in here.”
Visitors to Wellspring will be able to check out the machine for themselves when the organization hosts its annual community event Saturday, Sept. 14 and Sunday, Sept. 15 at its Wellspring Way facility next door to the Meridian Community Centre. The event will feature a Fenwick Market popup on Saturday, and a community night featuring live music from Andy Colonico along with Revolver and Friends, food, and drink vendors as well as a night market.
On Sunday, families have a chance to try out goat yoga with animals from Triple C Farms. Activities also include a pancake breakfast and live music. There will also be a Kids Zone featuring a touch a truck event, face painting and lawn games.
In 2023, Wellspring Niagara recorded 7,538 program visits, an increase of about 37 percent over 2022 numbers. New memberships for the organization also swelled by 29.5 percent.
Wellspring receives no government funding and relies on donations to fund its programming and support services across Niagara.
More information on Wellspring Niagara’s programs and services can be found at wellspring.ca/niagara.
