The money came from schools, businesses and charitable individuals. No matter where it came from, though, the nearly $8,500 all went to the same place: the 2014 Telemiracle campaign.
In its 38th year, Telemiracle raised nearly $5.3 million to assist Saskatchewan's special needs community with equipment and medical assistance. The contribution from Humboldt and the surrounding area was the aforementioned $8,500, a good chunk of which was raised on Feb. 28 at the Bella Vista Inn.
The Bella Vista's bar was the site of an event put on by the local Kinettes that featured a 50/50 draw, a silent auction, purse auction and live music from Gravel Hound. After all the bids were tallied and all the tickets were purchased, the night brought in $2,493. Previous fundraising from local schools and businesses raised an additional $5,986.72, bringing the grand total to $8,479.72.
"It's been awesome," event organizer and longtime Kinettes member Karen Fleischhacker said that night. "We're thankful for all of the businesses for supplying the auction items, to Judy at the Bella Vista for the space and to Gravel Hound for the music."
Along with five other local Kinettes members, Fleischhacker traveled to Regina for the main Telemiracle telethon on March 1. It was the culmination of a process that brought together a wide variety of community groups, all united behind one cause. Earlier in the day students from St. Augustine School had participated in a Skateathon at the Elgar Petersen Arena as part of their fundraising efforts.Even though the night at the Bella Vista was all about charity, there was no shortage of fun and excitement. The purse auction was especially interesting: the top bidders would not only take home the purse, but also the mystery contents inside. It was a bit of a gamble, but no one seemed to mind.
After the auctions were over and the winners were announced, Gravel Hound came on stage for their debut performance, a satisfying end to an impressive night. From Humboldt to La Ronge to Estevan and everywhere in between, Telemiracle was bringing together the province in a way that only it can.
"Saskatchewan really pulls together on this," Fleischhacker said with a satisfied smile.
"It's amazing."
