Well over 500 people greeted the CP Holiday Train when it arrived in Cochrane yesterday afternoon.

It was a half hour of entertainment in support of the Cochrane Activettes Share Your Christmas Campaign that annually provides Christmas for over 260 families. 

Lisa Foster, left, and Ann Beatty were among the Activettes collecting donations from the crowd. 

The Sam Roberts Band was joined by Kelly Prescott and Winnipeg fiddler Sierra Noble in bringing Christmas cheer to the community during the half-hour whistle stop.

The crowd roared when CP Rail made a $4,000 to the keepers of the local food bank and an organization that's widely known for helping those in need. 

Ann Beatty, of the Activettes, says another $2,424 was contributed by the crowd plus eight shopping carts full of nonperishable groceries.

"It was a great day," says Beatty.  "The weather was nice, we had a large crowd turn out and Cochrane again showed their generous spirit."

The Holiday Train rolls through Cochrane every other year and we can't wait until it returns in 2020.