“It is all about the kids, but it is also all about the way our community comes together. It’s just an incredible feeling.”
This is what Diane Daigle had to say to the Comox Valley Record. She’s the president of the Comox Valley Child Development Association, and she was talking about the star-studded Children’s Telethon they hosted in the Valley this weekend.
Our community showed up and showed out! Folks pitched in over $100,000 for kids in the community.
“I can’t describe the feeling inside me when we saw that final total,” said Daigle.
The community went above and beyond to help out some amazing youth, kids, and their families living on VanIsle by donating to CVCDA.
The whopping $127,580 will go to helping children with diverse abilities in the valley.
That’s no small feat, especially when many people are still recovering financially from the past few years.
“I really wondered about this year, because I know how hard it is these days for families,” said Pam Crowe, telethon committee chair, to the Comox Valley Record. “I have kids who are raising kids, and I know how expensive things like groceries are, so quite honestly, this result just amazes me… the Comox Valley continues to amaze me with their generosity.”
The entire event was filled to the brim with local talent. It even featured a performance by the iconic Fred Penner, who performed his classic “The Cat Came Back.”
Penner’s younger sister Susie has Down Syndrome, so it is a cause close to his heart.
“She really was a critical part of my life development, so there was no question when I was asked to perform. I’m so happy to be a part of this,” he told the Comox Valley Record.
He wasn’t the only celebrity to take part.
The Baynes Sound Lions wheeled a wheelbarrow from Fanny Bay to the Sid Williams Theatre in Courtenay during their annual Wheelbarrow Walk for the Children.
When they wheeled it onto the stage, it contained $11,161 donated by awesome residents they’d passed on their way.
“People were stopping and pulling over, giving us money, giving us the thumbs up. Everybody was so generous,” said Lion Jacqueline Miller to the Comox Valley Record. “It keeps growing every year. We had a goal at one time of $5,000. Now our goal every year is $10,000.”
Other very notable donations included a $25,000 cheque from Lacasse Construction, as well as a mysterious anonymous donation of $10,000 in the closing minutes.
The show also helped put Comox on the map, reaching a total of seven countries and 28 American states.
CVCDA executive director Cindy Xavier thanked all the volunteers and members of the public who came out and made it possible.
“I can’t get over this community… what they do when they come together for non-profits, it’s just outstanding,” said Xavier to the Comox Valley Record. “They make it so easy. Without the community, there is no way we can pull this off. It was a fantastic day.
One thing is for certain, as Diane Daigle put it, “It takes a village to raise a child, and the Comox Valley has that down.”
