News

Between Friends Club Charity Golf Classic Raises Over $140,000

Pinebrook Golf and Country Club - Monday, July 18, 2011

We would like to thank all our sponsors, donors and players for helping us make the 2011 Charity Golf Classic a success.

Skate, Walk or Wheel a-Kid-to-Camp Reaches $150,000 Goal

The 18th Annual Event took place at the Olympic Oval on March 12, 2011 . 52 teams registered for the event and averaged raising $694 per team. Teams dressed up as super heroes, athletic stars, fast food friends, cops, construction workers, and much more. The enthusiasm and energy was contagious throughout the day!

100% of the pledges raised at the event support the fee subsidy program for Camp Bonaventure, Camp Fun'zAmust and Adventurers Day Trippers. The generosity we received from our participants, volunteers, sponsors, and event donors ensures that no one misses out on summer camps due to financial constraints.

Congratulations to Team 15: Hodge Podge for raising the most money as a skating team ($20,581) and to Team A: Clue Crew for raising the most money as a walking team ($3,345). Without the continued fundraising efforts of our supporters, we would not be able to make summer dreams come true for so many youth with disabilities.

We would also like to thank our wonderful photographer, Garth, who took a number of pictures that we will be posting on our Fan Page on Facebook. If you are not on Facebook, we are working on putting together pictures on our Scrapbook Page.

Skate, Walk or Wheel a-Kid-to-Camp occurs every March so stay tuned for information on the 19th Annual Event and join the excitement.

SAK-APALOOZA 2011

On February 12, we hosted a Sak-apalooza at the Deerfoot Casino. The night featured local talents, Jonathan Ferguson and bORDERLINE. By 10:00 p.m. everybody was on the dance floor having a fantastic time.

Thanks to generous sponsors and all those who purchased a ticket, we raised approximatley $33,000. Funds from this vital event support our fee subsidy program which ensures that no one misses out on a program due to financial constraints. Based on our 2010 costs, program subsidies for Camp Bonaventure, Camp Fun’zAmust and Day Trippers will cost approximately $229,760. Because of their generosity, youth with disabilities will have the opportunity to make new friends and connect with old ones, experience a sense of belonging, develop skills, and make lasting memories this summer.

We would also like to thank Gerry David for his hard work, energy and time that went into making this event such a huge success.

SUPPER WITH SANTA - Winter Dreams Come True

What a way to kick off the holiday season! When it comes to children, Shaw Communications truly knows how to host a party! When you entered the Shaw building, your eyes were immediately set on the visually stunning, mouth-watering, cascading chocolate fountain. A treat anybody would love. The room lit up as you heard the carolers and the guitarist singing Christmas carols. Along the way, you stumbled into a magical realm complete with chicken fingers, mini hotdogs, fries, pizza, cupcakes, a popcorn machine, and much more. Supper with Santa this past year was a feast for the senses and all because of our new partnership with Shaw Communications.

We have hosted the free family event every Christmas for the past 20 years. 2010 marked the first year of a new exciting partnership with Shaw. Everybody attending was impressed by the time, the energy and the resources that Shaw devoted to Supper with Santa. Children’s activities, including the cookie decorating station, the face painting and reindeer candy cane station, were entertaining while the caricaturist brought some comic relief for our parents. That being said, it was nonetheless the arrival of Santa and his presents that made Supper with Santa a memorable experience. The Christmas spirit filled the room as laughter and joy filled our hearts!

All 65 children who attended the event received a special gift picked out by a Shaw employee. What’s more, all children also received an adorable teddy bear to snuggle up to and a coloring book to keep them busy til the next time Santa visited.

We would like to say thank you to Shaw Communications for hosting such an incredible evening and we look forward to working with them again. Hope to see you there next year!

SIMCO MANAGEMENT BRINGS CHRISTMAS

We were fortunate to have experienced the true miracle of the season this past December 2010. Between Friends Club was approached by Simco Management (Calgary); they were looking to get involved and give back to the community during the holiday season.

Simco Management (Calgary) provides Professional Property Management Services in the Calgary area. This new relationship opportunity was a great bridge to expose these professionals to a bit of what Between Friends Club does. After some discussion about different opportunities available, Simco immediately jumped on our ‘Adopt-a-family’ program.

The ‘Adopt a Family’ program pairs corporate groups with one of our families who would benefit from having a helping hand! The corporate group purchases, wraps and provides Christmas presents to their partnered family.

This has been a tradition carried on for many years by Between Friends Club and we were happy to have Simco embrace this initiative with open arms! A list of Christmas wants and needs were shared with Simco, and they went beyond all expectations and were able to provide one of our families with their entire wish list and then some!

Delivering the presents a couple days before Christmas brought joy to our family and tear to my eye… Thank You Simco Management for taking on this opportunity and going beyond all expectation. It was wonderful to see the Holiday Spirit in action!

~Kathleen Whelan, Personnel Coordinator

CALGARY CHILDREN'S FOUNDATION PLEDGE DAY 2010

December 10 marked the Calgary Children's Foundation Pledge Day in The Westin Hotel. Thanks to the generosity of their listeners and some special guests, they were able to raise over $160,000.

The Calgary Children's Foundation has been providing funding to us for many years and this year we received approximately $13,000 for Camp Bonaventure subsidies. Given this, we were very excited that we were invited to the event to speak about camp on AM770.

The BIG STAR of the day was 8 year-old Trevor. News Director, Laura Knop, interviewed Trevor about his experience at camp. He was adorable as he shared his favorite activities including boating and swimming. The interview was a hit. At the end, everybody was clapping for Trevor.

We would like to say Congratulations to the Calgary Children’s Foundation on their success and we would like to thank Trevor and his family for being an integral part of their success.

ALLIES FOR AUTISM

11th Annual Walk and Run Fundraiser

Between Friends Club is happy to announce that The Allies for Autism Foundation Walk and Run Fundraiser raised over $50,000. We would like to thank this amazing organization for inviting us to be a part of their day and for supporting us over the years.

This fundraiser benefits local Calgary agencies that provide treatment to individuals and families who have a member on the autism spectrum – one of these agencies is Between Friends Club! This year we received $10,000 towards subsidies for our participants with autism who are registered in Camp Bonaventure.

For more information, visit the Allies for Autism website or call (403) 208-0403.

FRIENDSHIP DAY 2010

This year Friendship Day is on Monday, September 13. During this one-day celebration, volunteers from Talisman will gather over the lunch hour on Stephen Avenue Walk to hand out bouquets of free flowers to passersby.

The idea is to keep one flower and pass on the others (based on the “Pay it Forward” concept) to a friend, family member, co-worker, or even a stranger.

On Saturday, September 11 we will require the help of approximately 30 volunteers to organize flowers. Please join us and have fun sharing the gift of Friendship.

Contact Andrea for more information.

GROWING PARTNERSHIPS

When Nexen volunteers connected with us about doing another Days of Caring, we were ecstatic. For some, this was their second year in a row volunteering at Camp Bonaventure. Groups had a fabulous time horse-back riding, visiting Spruce Meadows, playing in Stanley Park, and rock climbing.

“Having our donors experience what camp is all about and connect with the kids creates a deeper relationship. Corporate Calgary is remaining cautious with spending and that includes charitable donations; it is imperative that our supporters continue to support us” states Suzanne Jackett, CEO.

Giving back to the community is deeply rooted at Nexen. They have been supporting us for over 12 years and to date has donated over $40,000 towards camp subsidies. This year alone, the $20,000 sponsorship for Skate, Walk or Wheel a-Kid-to-Camp provided 66 camp subsidies.

Thank you Nexen for your support and for giving our kids an opportunity to enjoy camp life.

Special Thanks To An Inspiring Young Lady

We would like to thank Alex for raising over $200 in lieu of gifts at her 13th birthday party. We are extremely touched to have her think of us on her special day.

This inspiring young lady is an older sister of two of our participants. She volunteered at Camp Bonaventure last summer and will be returning to camp this year. She even recruited two of her friends to volunteer!

Thanks again Alex for your tremendous support and thoughtfulness!

"Between The Ropes" with Stephen Ames

We would like to thank Pinebrook Golf and Country Club for hosting "Between The Ropes" and giving 20 BFC youth an opportunity to learn from Pro Golfer, Stephen Ames. Stephen was inspiring to watch as he gave each participant a lesson in golf. Not only did each participant get a lesson, they all received a signed golf ball from Stephen Ames himself.

We would also like to thank the 20 Pinebrook Juniors for sharing their tips and techniques to our participants. It was a fun, exciting day for everyone involved.

Be sure to check out our facebook fanpage for more photos.

Between Friends Club Casino

Thank you to everyone who volunteered at our Casino, June 18 & 19. We would not have been able to hold it without your support.

The Sibshops program is offered in partnership with Connections Counseling, Calgary SCOPE Society, Renfrew Educational Services and the Between Friends Club. “ Sibshops are best described as opportunities for brothers and sisters of children with special health and developmental needs to obtain peer support and education within a recreational context. “

Call Connections Counseling at 209-1100 for more information and to register.

Programs for 7 to 11, 12 to 14, 15 to 18 year olds.

HUSKY OIL LOYALTY CARDS

By now most of you should have received a Husky/Mohawk Oil Loyalty Card. We hope you will use the card often, as each time you do, we will receive the equivalent of 2% of every purchase. We have received over $1,300 since the inception of this program. Thank you to everyone for filling up at Husky or Mohawk! If for some reason you have not received your card yet, or you would like additional cards, please contact Sue Acorn at 508-0114 or sacorn@betweenfriends.ab.ca"