Rotary Carl Oake Swimathon has raised more than $44K
The Rotary Carl Oake Swimathon Committee presented the results of its 31st annual fundraising event at the Holiday Inn Waterfront on Monday.
The committee announced $44,000 after expenses in donations. More money is still rolling in for the year, said Jason Stabler, co-chairman of the event committee. Stabler said he expects net income to reach “somewhere around $45,000 for the year.”
The funds were raised by participants in the annual event, which was held at the YMCA Peterborough Feb. 17.
Teams, many of them wearing colourful costumes, took turns swimming laps at the Y pool.
The committee also presented a number of awards to various sponsors and participants.
The award for top donor went to Peter MacLoghlin - a retired doctor who raised $3,150. MacLoghlin was absent from the ceremony and the award was accepted by Stabler on his behalf.
The best-dressed team award was presented to Beverley BrownChislett, who accepted on behalf of her four-woman team called the Sharkettes. Chislett, a dance teacher at Studio 505, said it was her first year participating in the event and that her favourite part of the team’s “minimalist” costumes were the shark fins they wore on their heads.
A quarter of the proceeds were donated to Easter Seals Ontario and the rest went to the Rotary Club of Peterborough to support the club’s community initiatives.
A giant cheque for $11,037 was presented to Coralie Jacobs, development officer at Easter Seals, who accepted on behalf of her organization. This is Jacobs’ fifth year handling a big cheque from the fundraiser.
The money is used to send children with physical disabilities to a fully accessible summer camp as well as providing kids with mobility equipment, she said.
Throughout the 31 years of its existence the swimathon has raised more than $1 million.