Five hundred teddy bears will be finding homes in the Cochrane area, thanks to the 29th annual Calgary Hitmen's Teddy Bear Toss, and the Cochrane and Area Events Society (CAES).
Calgary Hitmen forward London Hoilett found the back of the net at the 9:14 mark of the first period to trigger a flash flood of 21,233 stuffed toys onto the ice of the Scotiabank Saddledome on Dec. 3. It marked back-to-back Teddy Bear Toss goals for Hoilett who scored the iconic goal at last year’s game.
CAES volunteers were there to lend a hand for the fifth year and were rewarded with 500 stuffies, exactly what they had requested, to bring joy to area youth.
Scott Willis, of Mountain Toys, left, continues to volunteer to escort the stuffies back to town. He's here with Erika Richards, of CAES, and some members of the Calgary Hitmen and mascot Farley the Fox.CAES chair Marina Chabbert says 98 per cent of them will be donated to the Cochrane Activettes Share Your Christmas program. Some will also be provided for baskets being prepared by the Cochrane Pregnancy Care Centre and a few will be used as giveaways and raffle items for CAES's giant community New Year's celebration.
She says year-in, year out, it's exciting to witness the toss and volunteer to sort the stuffies.
"There was a lot of buzz, a lot of energy, and they had an increase in volunteers sorting and counting the bears this year, so we finished everything and could still watch the end of the game, which was fantastic."
Lions Rodeo Queen Kyla Lightfoot and Activette Joan Shipton were among those loading items on the full-sized school bus parked in front of Canadian Tire for last year's Stuff-A-Bus. By the end, the bus was full. (file photo)This leads up to the 12th annual Stuff-a-Bus, created by the late Ronnie Knowles and CAES, in support of the Cochrane Activettes Share Your Christmas campaign.
The bus will be parked in front of Canadian Tire, 55 Quarry St. E., on Dec. 9 to collect toys and cash donations from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.
It's now a well-established tradition that brings the community together to make sure everyone enjoys the spirit of giving.
"There's a real need this year, and we just look forward to kicking off the holiday season collecting all of the donations we get from the generous residents of Cochrane and the surrounding areas."
The stuffies will be among the passengers on the bus.
"If people want to pop in and come see the bears that would be awesome, and also bring a cash or toy donation for kids, teens, or adults because the Activettes collect for the entire family."
Making sure everything was perfect for a lasting Christmas memory. (file photo)There are only a few spots remaining for appointments to have photos with Santa at the event. Offered is a free e-picture with Santa with a toy, money, or food donation.Register here.
Chabbert says even if you don't have an appointment, you're welcome to drop by. Sometimes there is a short gap between appointments to allow for some additional photos to be taken.
Each year, a new elaborate set is created for the photos. It's never duplicated and different than what you would find in a mall.
"This year's theme is Storytime with Santa, so we've approached the Found Book store to give us a hand to lend us some props and some books so we can encourage reading while doing some fun storytime pictures with Santa."
In response to Canada's Online News Act and Meta (Facebook and Instagram) removing access to local news from their platforms, CochraneNow encourages you to get your news directly from your trusted source by bookmarking this page and downloading the CochraneNow app.
Wed, May 1, 12:00 PM
Full-time, Part-time, Retail