The Pink Ladies Snow Ride for the Cure wrapped up for 2024 in their battle against breast cancer.
There hasn't been an in-person event since 2020, with only a raffle being held, as well. The raffle still snowed enduring support for the cause. Tammy Hammersley is chair of the committee and describes what it was like this year to be back together again.
"We are absolutely ecstatic with the turnout, "says Hammersley. "We had roughly 200 guests here tonight enjoying the evening, having a great supper. We had awesome prizes. Tonight, we had 50 brown bag auction, some live auctions, silent auction, and some very, very generous people in the room. We were able to raise around $35,000 as our preliminary numbers."
She notes a surprise overwhelmed them with some of the support.
"I just wanted to especially mention the Canadian Livestock Curling Association. They are another group that was here in the hotel tonight. They surprised us, came, got us, and passed the hat around and they donated over $3,000," says Hammersley.
She notes she just met the group the day before their event, and they indicated their passion about the Pink Ladies' fight against breast cancer.
"They said that they wanted to do something for us tonight," continues Hammersley. "They, kind of, caught us off guard this afternoon when we were starting our event, and wanted us to come up and partake in their evening, as well. They presented us with over $3,000. It was absolutely phenomenal. We're all in tears. We all came back all weepy-eyed."
They changed up the event somewhat due to the lack of snow.
"We didn't ride our sleds, but we did ride on a hay wagon, and that was thanks to Don Bowden. We went all the way down Saskatchewan to the (Lions Prairie) Manor, and all the way back, hopped and hollered, had a lot of fun and, I thank everybody who joined us today, had a lot of fun doing that, as well."
Amy Kendall was also a part and raised the most funds for the effort -- $8,200.
It's in support of the Portage District General Hospital Foundation.
"I found people weren't donating to me, just personally, out of the pocket, so I came up with the 'I Heart Boobies' shirt. and I actually only sold 100 shirts my first year, and I pulled third in 2020. Then this year, decided to go big or go home. I wanted first place, I wanted to be the top dog, and I got it. And I'm so stoked and I still have T-shirts left if anybody's interested."
She notes you can get one of the shirts on Facebook or Instagram. She explains she's the one with the bright orange and yellow snowmobile.
Kendall says she's been riding since she was a small kid grew up on Kitty cats and Mini Zs, went to a 440, and then straight to a 2008 XP800.
"I first heard about the Ride back in 2020 with a friend of mine, Cindy, and she told me I should join up, and here I am," adds Kendall. "It's so fun. It's so rewarding. There's a huge group of here. There's nothing but support. We're all here together. We went on the hay ride and it was awesome. Everybody was honking at us. It's all smiles. It's so much fun. Do it, come out!"
Surprise donation video below:
