Panera Bread is donating $100,000 to the Children’s Cancer Center of Tampa. The money was collected through the company’s Community Breadbox donation program in 24 bay-area bakery-cafes and matched by Covelli Family Limited Partnership, a franchisee of Panera Bread. A ceremony takes place at 2 p.m. Tuesday at the Children's Cancer Center, 4901 W. Cypress St.  

With the $100,000 donation, Panera Bread will kick off its next Children’s Cancer Center benefit through its Giving Tree campaign. From Thanksgiving through the end of December, 24 Tampa-area Panera Bread bakery-cafes will display Giving Trees filled with wishes from bay-area children who are battling childhood cancer. This year, customers will receive a free gingerbread man cookie for every gift purchased for a child on the tree. In its six-year partnership, Panera Bread’s Giving Tree program has provided gifts for 400 families.