The Rotary Club of Airdrie Dragons’ Den event was held on Tuesday evening, 28th November, at Bert Church Theatre, and $20 000 was given away to deserving Airdrie organizations. The presentations made by the organizations were of a very high standard and rewarding to listen to: What great work is being done in our community. A comment was made that it is not the amount of money that matters, but it is the number of lives that are positively affected that is significant above all.Volunteer Airdrie was formed in 2010 with a mission to promote lifelong volunteerism in the Airdrie area, to foster opportunities and collaborative social partnerships between individuals, families, businesses, organizations and governments. Rotary presented Volunteer Airdrie with a cheque for their youth leadership development program based on the LEAD Program in 2018 to assist youth to acquire lifelong leadership skills, develop self confidence and self-esteem to discover self-worth, encourage involvement in the community, and to connect with other people and develop meaningful relationships. David Maffitt received the cheque on behalf of Volunteer Airdrie.
Nancy McPhee received a cheque for Stephen’s Backpacks Society for children in need. These monies will be going to help more children in the Airdrie community to start school with confidence with new shoes.
Kids Up Front collaborates directly with over 250 community social service providers to provide FREE opportunities for recreation, participation in arts and cultural activities, sports events, and educational experiences for the most vulnerable citizens in our community. Neil Hilts & Landon Westley presented their activities and request to the Rotary Club of Airdrie Dragons’ Den and they walked away at the end of the evening with a well deserved cheque in the pocket.
The two young men, Brendyn Storrier and Kyle Middleditch, from SWAT BOTS made an excellent presentation as motivation for their request to the Rotary Club of Airdrie Dragons’ Den. The SWOT BOTS is an organization that provides youth with the opportunity to learn about science, engineering and technology through the challenge of building robots in a team environment. The monies that were awarded to them will be used to acquire specialized parts and materials to build a competitive robot for 2018 the ‘Relic Recovery’ and ‘Power-Up’ challenges.
Airdrie Project Linus requested part of the Rotary Club Dragon’s give-away to acquire and distribute fabric, fleece, yarn, and other knitting, crochet and quilting supplies for blanketeers, to enable them to create blankets for children in need, through the giving of their time and skill without the added expense of supplies. Linus’ Kimberlie Ferrier explained that they distribute hugging blankets to children and teens facing terrible situations, whether that be serious/critical illness, loss of a parent, risks of suicide, fires floods or other times of crisis, to assure them they are not facing it alone. They walked away with a cheque and Rotary as a partner.
Ex-Rotarian Lori Rehill made an emotional appeal for part of the Rotary Club of Airdrie Dragon’s Den give-away on behalf of ADVAS. ADVAS makes a huge difference to those in our community who are impacted by family and domestic violence. The cheque that was presented to ADVAS will be used to pay for volunteers’ registration fees for the April 2018 Provincial Police Based Victim Service Conference. We wish them successful training at this conference.
Rotarian Dave Martin represents the ‘Airdrie Citizens on Patrol Society’ in the Rotary Club of Airdrie. He addressed the Dragons’ Den and requested a donation to off-set a portion of the patrolling fuel costs. The Society is part of a volunteer based community-policing program of the Alberta Government and the RCMP. Expenses involved in patrolling, insurance, wear-&-tear, etc on vehicles are all borne by the Society’s members. Dave received a cheque on behalf of the Society to assist with the operations within Airdrie and Crossfields.
Torchlight Theatre Society is a not-for-profit emerging theatre company with the desire to give mentorship opportunities to young and old, and to bring quality entertainment to Airdrie. Chelsea Trestle asked the Rotary Club of Airdrie Dragons’ Den for part of the give-away towards the $7 250 budget of ‘The Secret Garden’ by Gary Peterson, a youth production. A cheque was presented to help with expenses for costumes, props and the set. Good luck with staging the play, and your passion for youth and the arts.
The Rotary Club of Airdrie has been a strong supporter of Airdrie Meals on Wheels (AMOW) for some time now. AMOW has been serving our city since 1983. It was not a hard sell for Amy Austin at the Dragon’s Den to get a cheque, but she delivered her message very professionally. The monies are earmarked for getting their message out through their website, pamphlets, awareness campaigns and events to increase donations and meal requests. We know you will deliver!
Michelle Edgar is the Program Coordinator at Soap for Hope, and they collect used hotel hygiene products and repurpose it into usable products for shelters and outreach programs. She requested funds for packing 20 Hampers for Hope for Christmas and to purchase cotton yarn for seniors to knit facecloths for hygiene kits. She invited Rotarians to visit Soap for Hope to see how money from the presented cheque is helping others.
The two poets, Michelle and Suzie, created their own gift from the heart and lift the Rotary Club of Airdrie Dragons’ Den spirit with their unique rhyme request for funds to also uplift the spirits of people in the Airdrie community who are facing a difficult time through no fault of their own. They got their monies to put towards gift cards or cash packages.
Airdrie Rodeo Ranch Association (ARRA) is 100% run by around 40 volunteers for the past 50 years. The Jr Rodeo has no less than 350 children (2 – 17) participating free of charge. It teaches them a sense of accomplishment, respect for animals and they learn to be a team member. Emelie Marsten requested an amount to help off-set the cost of putting on the Jr Rodeo. The Rotary Club of Airdrie Dragons’ Den presented her a cheque to help ARRA keep this event free for all children. Keep our heritage going!
The Wild Rose Humane Society (WRHS) promotes ethical and humane treatment of animals. It has educational programs and emergency support for local charities dealing with animals. They are in the process of opening a shelter and Dean Orlando requested funding towards a dog wash bay or fencing around an animal yard or a quarantine kennel from the Rotary Club of Airdrie Dragons’ Den on behalf of WRHS. A cheque was presented to WRHS in response to the request.
Brack Roberts was very articulate and convincing in his request for funding for a fledgling society to continue to build the film community in Airdrie. The Rotary Club of Airdrie Dragons’ Den awarded a donation to host next year’s festival in Airdrie in the local movie theatre, the Roxy. We all want to support you to build a thriving and creative filmmaker society in Airdrie.
The last presenters at the Rotary Club of Airdrie Dragons’ Den were Michelle Gray and Charlotte Hedman on behalf of the Seniors Week planning committee. They asked for and received some of the $20 000 that was up for grabs. The money will be used for the 2018 celebration for A Friend Indeed, Bethanie Airdrie, Community Links, Luxstone Manor, Over 50 Club, The Hamlets at Cedarwood Station, and Volunteers at Large. Enjoy the celebrations!