Hatters gather for the Coldest Night
More than 100 Hatters gave their support to the fourth annual Coldest Night of the Year event, which supports the Hope Street Compassionate Ministry Centre.
“The Coldest Night of the Year is a family-safe walk that takes place in 121 locations across Canada,” said Hope Street’s executive director Murray Kumm. “Of course, since we’re here for the fourth year in a row, Medicine Hat is one of those locations. There’s over 20,000 walkers walking tonight, and we’re hoping to raise $4.5-million at all of the events.”
People are able to choose from a range of different walking courses, ranging in distance, to allow everyone to participate.
“We want this to be something everyone can do,” said Kumm. “We have a lot of people of all ages out here tonight, and we have volunteers on the routes to make sure no one gets lost.”
All of the money raised from the local walk will stay in the city, an important part of the event, says Kumm.
“All of the money raised in Medicine Hat stays in Medicine Hat,” said Kumm. “It goes to support the family-safe meal at Hope Street that we have every Sunday.
“We see between 85-95 people every week, and we never turn anyone away. We don’t ask questions or make anyone prove anything. We may not hit our $30,000 goal tonight, but we’ll still raise close to half of our operating budget — that’s really big for us.”
For more information on Hope Street go to www.hopestreetcmc.ca