Swift Current Coldest Night of the Year walk to raise funds for counselling services
Participants in the upcoming Coldest Night of the Year (CNOY) walk in Swift Current will help to raise funds for free youth and family counselling services at The Center.
The community walk takes place on Feb. 24 and is hosted by the Swift Current Community Youth Initiative (SCCYI).
This year’s fundraising goal is $85,000 and SCCYI Executive Director Nathan Wiebe said the goal is to have even more teams signed up than last year.
“We’re hoping for around 40 teams,” he noted. “It’s a lofty goal, but we’ve seen incredible support come our way and we don’t feel this is an unattainable goal. We’ve seen some new teams sign up, but we still need more teams and more people get involved on the volunteering side of things to push for that goal.”
This will be the fourth year that the CNOY walk takes place in Swift Current. Last year’s event raised around $73,000 for counselling services at The Center with the support of 34 teams and about 150 walkers. There were around 200 people in attendance for the event’s start.
“The event itself is a celebration,” he said. “It’s an appreciation for the people that put in the work to raise funds for support services. So that’s a big thing to keep in mind when thinking about February 24th. We try our best at that date just to really spread that gratitude to all the people that participate.”
CNOY is a national fundraising initiative that partners with nonprofit organizations in communities across Canada to organize an annual walk in February. It has now become an integral part of the fundraising activities by the SCCYI after hosting three successful community walks in support of free counselling services at The Center.
“We’ve decided as an organization that we would make this an annual thing due to the fact that it really falls in line with our mission and our goals when it comes to fundraising and getting the community involved,” he said. “It’s an opportunity to shed light on some of the things we’re doing service-wise. We really enjoy sharing some of the things we’re doing and getting people in our community involved, being a community youth centre. So it’s a good opportunity to do that.”
The CNOY format makes it convenient for teams to register online by going to www.cnoy.org and to start their fundraising efforts.
“The fundraising is very easy,” he said. “It’s done through your online profile. You can send an e-mail through your profile to people that you think would support your team or support you in your walk. So everything online is very user-friendly and very easy to do all at www.cnoy.org. You just go to the Swift Current location and sign up your team.”
There is an option for individuals without a team to also participate and to raise funds by registering to join The Center team.
“You can register yourself,” he said. “We set up a Center team this year, if you want to just join and walk on the Center’s team.
That gives you some versatility there as well, if you don’t have a team to go on and are a little intimidated about starting your own team. You could still get involved.”
There is an option for those who are unable to be part of the walk on Feb. 24 to still fundraise and complete their own walk at a time convenient to them. However, Wiebe is eager to see registered participants and teams getting together on the actual day.
“We’re going to have food, we’re going to have games, we’re going to shut down the block again and really make it a fun family environment for everybody to come in to just have a lot of fun,” he said. “We’re really looking forward to that opportunity.”
The community walk on Feb. 24 will take place along a marked route over distances of two or five kilometres, with the start and finish at The Center in downtown Swift Current. Check-in will begin at 4 p.m. and the walk will start at 5 p.m. The street will be closed off and the celebration will include activities for children and a light meal after the walk.
A variety of community sponsors have come on board to support the event and he noted that there are many returning sponsors as well as new ones. S3 Group Ltd. will be the lead sponsor for a third year.
“We’re really grateful for them and many other sponsors,” he said. “That’s just another view on how the community functions in Swift Current. They’re so supportive and they want to see our youth and families be supported in unique and effective ways.”
All funds raised by the CNOY community walk in Swift Current will help to continue the free youth and family counselling services provided at The Center.
“There’s a great need in our community for these mental health supports,” he said. “Our counsellors are very busy. We have incredible people who are involved in our support service building and they’re passionate to assist people with their mental health needs. It’s vital to be able to have a service in our community that’s free, easy, quick access, and that’s consistent.”
These services are provided by three counsellors. One is working full-time and the other two are parttime.
“Our service for our community is free, because we do the fundraising to provide a salary for our counsellors,” he said. “We want high quality, passionate people in our counselling department. We have exactly that. We have such an amazing team, just well-rounded and lots of experience.”
The counselling service is situated in a recently acquired and renovated building space directly next to The Centre location in downtown Swift Current.
“The people we have the privilege of working with in our organization really make that space what it is,” he said. “It is just a bright and welcoming atmosphere. We’ve had nothing but positive feedback. It’s been really encouraging. It really affirms that decision as an organization to take that step.”
To register a team for the Feb. 24 community walk in Swift Current, to donate to a team or walker, or to register as a volunteer, go to the CNOY website (www.cnoy.org). There is a link to each participating community in Canada. The information for Swift Current includes details about all the teams, and there is an option to make online donations.