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M&M Meat Shops Urges Canadians to Reconnect with Family by Sharing a Meal and Enjoying Quality Time Together

By: M&M Meat Shops Ltd. |  0 Shares     100 Reads

Fourth Annual M&M Meat Shops National Family Dinner Night: September 18, 2008 Supports the Crohn's and Colitis Foundation of Canada

September 18, 2008 // Franchising.com // On Thursday, September 18, 2008, M&M Meat Shops is encouraging Canadians to take time out of their busy schedules and participate in its fourth annual National Family Dinner Night to celebrate what really matters most - spending quality time with friends and family. Launched in 2004, this phenomenal program has touched the hearts and minds of families, community leaders and dignitaries from coast-to-coast. This year, more than 50 community leaders have already proclaimed their support, including members of Parliament, premiers, mayors and city councils. National Family Dinner Night has gained tremendous moral and charitable support during the years and has contributed significantly to the more than 16 million dollars M&M Meat Shops has raised for the Crohn's and Colitis Foundation of Canada (CCFC) during their 20 year partnership. This year, M&M Meat Shops urges everyone in Canada to register their participation and demonstrate the importance of getting together with the people who matter most in their life.

Register Your Participation

For everyone who registers their participation in National Family Dinner Night on the website: www.mmmeatshops.com or www.nationalfamilydinnernight.com, M&M Meat Shops will make a $1 donation to the CCFC, up to a maximum of $100,000.

"The importance of family dinners reaches far beyond simply sitting down for a meal together," says Mac Voisin, Founder of M&M Meat Shops. "National Family Dinner Night encourages busy families to reconnect by spending quality time together, talking and sharing around the dinner table, while supporting a worthy cause."

Making Meal Time a Priority

Canadians' lives have never been busier and setting aside quality time for family has never been more difficult, but the importance of family dinners reaches far beyond simply sharing a meal together. Family dinners can have a lasting, positive effect on open communication between adults and youths and they can re-establish a sense of family unity.

A recent study conducted by Angus Reid Strategies reveals that 22% of Canadians admit to barely talking during family meals and in 19% of Canadian households, one person dominates the conversation. More than 67% of Canadians think their family dinners are too rushed to allow for desired talking and sharing to take place. When Canadians do take the time to sit down together as a family and share a meal, 70% say it helps bond them closer together; an indication that Canadians still hold this traditional event sacred and meaningful.

"Sharing a meal together plays an important role in strengthening the bond between family members," says Dr. Karyn Gordon, author, spokesperson and an expert on building relationships between teens and parents. "Adults think kids don't want to spend time together, but this isn't the case. It's the parents' role to create activities that involve quality time and the easiest way to do this is by sharing a family meal."

Strengthening Your Family Bond

The first step to spending quality time with loved ones is to free yourself from all distractions, electronic or otherwise, so you can enjoy the undivided attention of those at the dinner table. Next time you get together for a family meal, ask everyone to sit down to eat without being connected to a single electronic device.

"Make your family a priority during the meal," says Dr. Gordon. "Turn off cell phones and TVs and focus on each other during dinner. By removing distractions and focusing, you you will begin to learn and understand your family better."

Family meals don't have to be stressful and setting a relaxing and fun mood is a good starting point for having effective family dinners. "Parents need to listen more and talk less at the dinner table," says Dr. Gordon. "If your kids perceive you as relaxed and positive, not uptight and critical, they will be more likely to open up and share."

Sitting down for a meal together can have a lasting, positive effect on open communication between adults and youths and can re-establish a sense of family unity. "Research shows that kids who eat meals with their families are more likely to have a stronger vocabulary, eat their vegetables and even believe that their parents are proud of them" says Dr. Gordon. "National Family Dinner Night celebrates togetherness and is an important date to kick-start effective family meals in your home."

About M&M Meat Shops

Since opening its first store in 1980, M&M Meat Shops, a Kitchener-based business, has taken pride in offering high quality foods and convenient meal solutions that help make family dinners and at-home entertaining effortless and delicious. With more than 475 locations across the country, it is the largest specialty frozen food retailer in Canada and is considered to be one of the most successful franchisee networks.

M&M Meat Shops offers hundreds of meal ideas for today's busy families in just one aisle, with products ranging from succulent steaks to delicious desserts and convenient meal ideas. For more information on M&M Meat Shops or for tips on hundreds of meal ideas visit www.mmmeatshops.com.

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