Each year for a 33-hour period, Weyburn's attention is focussed on the annual fundraising telethon for the Weyburn and District United Way, namely the Communithon, which will be held this year from the Cafetorium at the Weyburn Comprehensive School.
The event begins at 8 a.m. on Friday, Oct. 26 and will run until 5 p.m. on Saturday, Oct. 27, featuring local talent from Weyburn schools, as well as individuals and groups from the city and area who will showcase their talent in many and various ways. The 33 hours of broadcast will also include information about the member agencies who comprise the United Way, each of which play important roles in helping people in need in the community and area.
The agencies agree to be under the umbrella of the United Way, in return for which the United Way will divide the proceeds from the Communthon to assist in keeping their programs and services available for another year, for the benefit of the people they serve.
The organizations will not canvas door-to-door in return for this support, so in many ways, this is a very smart and efficient way for the groups to cooperate together to achieve a common goal: gaining support from the public to continue their very necessary service to those in need.
The Communithon itself is a community event in most every sense of the word; the performers come from every school, every service club and organization, and many volunteers groups in addition who all come in and provide a song or a skit or some form of entertainment for those watching on Access or in person at the Cafetorium. The event itself is made possible entirely by the donation of time by volunteers, and they do everything from collecting pledges, taking phone calls, helping coordinate the performer groups and individuals from behind the scenes, to those manning the cameras and sound board, or those who volunteer to do the announcing in between of the dollar amounts raised, of the donations made and of each performer group or individual as they come up.
The sum total is a massive group effort where, if all goes right and the public responds in a way that is helpful, by the end of the 33 hours the targeted goal has been reached and the member agencies are then able to carry one for those who need their services.
Come out and be a part of the United Way effort, whether as a donor or performer.
