Thank you, Santa Lucia & the KOS charity pizza
Together, we ate 9,000 pizzas in support of families living with dementia.
Showing support for families impacted by dementia, one slice at a time.
Over the last year, the Alzheimer Society of Manitoba has been Santa Lucia’s charity of choice for their KOS pizza campaign. During this time, thousands of KOS pizzas have been sold throughout Manitoba, with a portion of the proceeds going to the Alzheimer Society.
We are so grateful to every Manitoban who took part and enjoyed a delicious pizza in support of a great cause.
This May, Kos Simeonidis from Santa Lucia visited our provincial office alongside members of his team to present our organization with a cheque for $25,743 — the result of approximately 9,000 KOS pizzas sold since June 26, 2025.
“We worked really hard to make this possible, and we’re so proud of this cheque,” said Kos as he presented the cheque to ASM staff. “This is our biggest donation yet, and we hope it will only get bigger in the future.”
Kos spoke openly about what drives his team’s commitment to giving back and why causes like this one are close to his heart.
“We’ve lost a lot of family members to cancer and other diseases. I have recently been dealing with my own health concerns as well,” he said. “When you’re affected by sickness, you start learning more about all of the organizations in our community that offer programs to help families move through the daily struggle. Raising this money to help people and families affected by dementia means a lot to us — it makes us feel like a part of the community.”
The funds raised through this initiative will help support the Alzheimer Society’s essential services, like our First Link Client Support program, education sessions, support groups, dementia-friendly programming and more. These resources help individuals and families living with dementia better understand the disease, navigate everyday life and connect with a community of support they can lean on again and again.
“I have lots of friends whose parents and loved ones are dealing with dementia, and I always refer them to the folks at Alzheimer Society,” says Ace Burpee, who attended the Kos cheque presentation alongside Virgin Radio’s Chrissy Troy, Lloyd and Amber Saleem.
“To be able to present a cheque for over $25,000 as a local business is huge. It’s a grind out there, especially for the restaurant industry. For Santa Lucia to continually give back to organizations like the Alzheimer Society is truly amazing.”
(Ace also noted that he personally did his part — happily eating more than a few KOS pizzas over the course of the campaign.)
“It’s an honour to accept a donation of this amount,” said Jessica Harper, First Link Senior Manager at the Alzheimer Society of Manitoba. “We are so thankful to Kos, the Santa Lucia team and all Manitobans who purchased the KOS pizza and contributed to this fundraiser. Eighty per cent of our funding comes from donors and fundraising initiatives like these. It’s so meaningful to see the community rally together so families living with dementia can continue to access a lifeline of support and programming.”
To Kos, Santa Lucia, Virgin Radio, and every person who enjoyed the charity pizza: thank you. You make our work possible, and you have helped make a difference in the lives of families living with dementia across Manitoba.
