A CANADIAN man has started a GoFundMe campaign aimed at saving local businesses during the coronavirus shutdown.
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Kieren O'Riley has started 'It's my shout', a page designed for people to give some money, like they normally would for their morning coffee, to local Ballarat businesses who have been forced to close their doors indefinitely until the pandemic is over.
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"These are places we love and we want them to stay open as long as they can," Mr O'Riley said.
"Even if it's something just like the $4 you would give for your morning coffee. Every little bit helps.
"I believe it's really important we do everything we can to support the people within our community.
"So far, I've only really set this up in my small circle and everyone has so far been very supportive, so I've reached out to council to see if this is an idea that might get some traction.
"The idea would be to assist well-known, reputable businesses around Ballarat - we don't want anyone to have to close permanently."
Mr O'Riley said he hoped to work with council to find the businesses that were most at need of support.
"People don't realise margins are so tight in these businesses, some are closing up shop forever, I think it's important as a community we try and do something to support them.
"Obviously it could be a catch 22 as people might be more reserved to give that away that they normally would spend on a coffee, but every little bit helps.
"Hopefully we can activate something like we saw with the bushfires and it can be feed straight into our favourite businesses."
Mr O'Riley's page has set a goal of $10,000. If you would like to support him, you can do so here at gofundme.com. Or head to the main page and search It's My Shout! and the Ballarat page will be available to view.
Know of any community initiatives in Ballarat to help others get through the coronavirus? Let us know here.