The Weyburn Fire Department has a new crew of furry friends to help make the lives of hurt and scared children a little brighter. Caring employees at Western Financial Group donated more than 20 hand-built teddy bears for the department to give away.
"We don't like to think of any child needing the care of first responders but it does happen," said Dustin Kersey, branch manager of the Western Financial Group office in Weyburn. "Western Financial Group wanted to do something to give back to the communities it serves, and teddy bears were a fun, practical way to do that. I am proud to have a part in bringing the bears to the Weyburn community and I hope they can bring smiles to children's faces who maybe don't have much else to smile about."
The bears were created during a Build-A-Bear workshop at Western Financial Group's 2013 Leadership Conference in Richmond B.C. Approximately 200 managers attended and each built a bear to be distributed to organizations in 10 communities across western Canada, including the Weyburn Fire Department.
"The teddy bears Western Financial Group donated will be put to good use. They'll be carried on our fire trucks so they'll be on hand if we are called to a scene where a child is hurt or scared," said Weyburn's Fire Chief Steve Debienne. "The bears will accompany children on their ambulance rides and during hospital stays or will even be used to brighten the spirits of a child who has just lost everything in a house fire."
