This past year, a number of area restaurants and stores have offered great deals in the spirit of supporting the Spielman Fund, but one Ohio company takes the cake.
In 2008, during October’s national Breast Cancer Awareness Month, a portion of the sales of Velvet Ice Cream’s Vanilla Lovers Trio was donated to the Spielman Fund.
“Breast cancer has touched our family on more than one occasion and its eradication is something I hope to see in my lifetime,” says Luconda Dager, vice president of Velvet. “My mother, Tatla, survived breast cancer and my sister, Joanne, the food service director at Velvet. This effort is near and dear to our extended family at Velvet.”
Look for the special carton, which is pink, adorned with ribbons and a picture of Stefanie Spielman and Tatla Dager. Velvet Ice Cream has been a family-owned and operated business for nearly 100 years. Founded in 1914 by family patriarch Joseph Dager, Velvet has been run by four generations of the Dager family.
In addition to the special product promotion, Velvet employees raised funds through the Velvet Cares program, an internal employee fundraising effort headed by a committee that put on many other activities to raise additional donations.
Velvet annually produces more than 6 million gallons of ice cream, which can be found in freezer cases throughout the Midwest. The landmark Ye Olde Mill, which houses the company headquarters, an ice cream museum and restaurant in Utica, Ohio, attracts 150,000 visitors a year. For more information on this company, see www.velveticecream.com.