On September 22nd, walkers joined us for our 19th annual Scotiabank AIDS Walk for Life. It was magical to see the smiling faces and the huge crowd swarming Eau Claire in support for AIDS Calgary. This summer has been one of the most inspiring times in my life. Since the flood, I have seen Calgary communities come together in a way I wasn’t sure they could and I have seen our event surpass what we had anticipated. We at AIDS Calgary have a lot to be thankful for and we wanted to take this opportunity to recognize a few individuals who have helped to make this day such a great success!
For our walkers, thank you so much for participating in the walk, raising awareness and donations. We are thrilled to announce our current total, with sponsorships and donations is just over $104,217 (and still counting)! This will support AIDS Calgary’s prevention, education and outreach services.
On the day of the walk we were able to award prizes to a few individuals and teams who made large contributions to the walk. Our top corporate team was MAC Cosmetics and the top Community team was SAC (Southern Alberta HIV Clinic). Our top individual fundraiser prize was awarded to Jeff Kapler who raised over $5700.00! Our top adult was Shannon McLeod $4500.00, our top child was Emily Berkenkamp-Kellett, and our top youth was Emma Rose! Thanks again to all of you for your fundraising efforts!
We also owe a huge thank you to our volunteers! On the day of the walk we had 106 volunteers on site assisting with everything from food and beverage, stage set, cheering people on at route stations, organizing kids’ activities, and assisting with banners, and registration just to name a few. These amazing people supported multiple positions and the event could not have been so successful without their adaptability and enthusiasm!
Now it’s time for us to start planning and getting ready for another great Walk in 2014! We look forward to seeing you at next year’s walk. We hope you will join us again as a walker, donor, sponsor, or volunteer!
From everyone at AIDS Calgary Awareness Association, we are very thankful and appreciate the support from the community so that we can continue to provide the services that we do.
Until next year,
Dawn Wheeler
Event Manager