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THURSDAY MARCH 18, 2021 PM40050478 *Terms and conditions apply. Short&Sweet MortgageSpecialShort & Sw & & SwShort & Sweet Special $3,000* CASHBACK Plus179 * % Five-YearFixed Terms1.79% Fix Call1-888-767-9535or emailgreatrate@myecu.ca today. $995'X7' FROM $999$$CARPETRUNNERS FROM$1997'X10' FROM $299$$8'X11'FROMFROMFROM AREA RUGS!NOTAX NOTAX /9/9 LIN FT KW'S LARGEST SELECTIONOVER 1,000 RUGS IN STOCK! There have been many stories of people going above and beyond to help others throughout the pandemic, but United Way fund- raising, perhaps not surprising- ly, was impacted in 2020 com- pared to past years. "Fundraising is never an easy thing to do, especially during a pandemic," said Joan Fisk, chief executive officer of the United Way Waterloo Region Communi- ties. "We saw an increasing need, but businesses have been affect- ed inordinately." The umbrella funder fell well short of its $7-million campaign goal after raising about $5.6 mil- lion the year prior, but like usual, about 90 per cent of the money raised was comprised of dona- CHARITIES, BUSINESSES WEATHERING PANDEMIC STORMS BILL JACKSON bjackson@torstar.cabjackson@torstar.cab See 'FUNDRAISING', page 10 Joan Fisk, chief executive officer, United Way Waterloo Region Communities. United Way photo FIND BREAKING NEWS AND UP-TO-DATE LOCAL INFORMATION ON COVID-19 ONLINE INFORMATION W A T E R LO O C H R O N IC LE .C A /C O R O N A V IR U S