Cambodia benefit
Itching to go out for great food and decent tunes? You probably want to think about going to the Kinsmen Banquet Centre on Saturday night. That's when Marcel Belley's old-time rock band, The Tomatoes, puts on a benefit performance to help out in Cambodia.
Organizers are optimistic the event will not just raise the roof but also raise money for the Hope Center, a care centre for families affected by HIV and AIDS. Three years ago they raised $12,000 and used the money to drill 15 water wells and a community pond, plus provide teacher sponsorship and purchase a solar power system for the center. If stretching your donation dollars is important to you, then you should seriously consider attending on the weekend.
The event starts at 5:30 p.m. There will be entertainment, plus great food from D'Arcy's Meat Market and a silent auction. Call Pierre Lefebvre at 780-975-4895 or stop in at D'Arcy's in the Campbell Business Park to get your tickets at $25 each.
Fernandez in CBC's top 50
Victor Fernandez, St. Albert's Santa to many firefighters in Central and South America, has advanced to the next level of a CBC contest called Canada's Champions of Change. He's one of only 50 competitors now vying for the title and also $25,000 for his charity, Canadian Aid for Fire Services Abroad (CAFSA). It recycles decommissioned firefighting equipment here by donating and delivering it to communities in developing nations like his native Chile where they don't have the resources to get their own. It means 40 to 60 hours of volunteering each week, on top of his regular full-time job at the fire station.
"I'm glad that somebody is paying attention to the work that I'm doing. Every little article about us — about CAFSA — it means awareness to people. And that's cool!"
The next step of the contest is taking the list down to the top 10 finalists by next Monday. That's when members of the public can vote for their favourites. Winners will be announced in January 2011.
To learn more about the contest or to view Fernandez's profile as a nominee, visit www.cbc.ca/change. To learn about his charity, visit www.cafsa.net.
Garage sale boosts food bank
It must have been some kind of garage sale. Pleasant Homes held its fourth annual sale just the week before last and to say that it did pretty well would be a colossal understatement.
"This garage sale — with two-bit items — managed to raise $2,700," said Gary Hauk, the operations manager for the local custom manufactured modular homebuilder. "It's really well-supported by the community, both giving donations and coming and buying things back."
The business's amazing ability to succeed in selling second-hand goods is only surpassed by how community-minded it is. It matched that figure and then gave the entire $5,400 to the Morinville Food Bank.
He said they're really just happy to help out because there is still such a need in town, especially in advance of the Christmas season that always seems to hit people the hardest.
"There is. Our donation last year was around $4,000 and they were down to their last $50 voucher."
He added that he believes that more help is needed.
You can get in touch with Morinville Food Bank at 780-939-2636 to schedule an appointment. Hampers can only be picked up on Tuesdays or Wednesdays at 9922-101 St.
