From crammed full tacos to piled high taco salads, Tuesday night's Altona YFC fundraising buffet appears it will be another successful event. Executive Director Sheridan Sawatzky says the crowd was large as soon as the doors opened at the Rhineland Pioneer Centre.
"I think anybody who's here definitely knows it's full, which is awesome," he shared. "We're so thankful to have the support of the community, and especially for Elmer's Manufacturing the sponsor, so everybody donating here gets a donation receipt for supporting YFC. It's been awesome, and especially to have the youth involved in helping has been huge for us."
Youth front and centre
And the Altona YFC participants Sawatzky was referring to could be seen everywhere Tuesday night from washing dishes in the kitchen to reloading the buffet to clearing tables and connecting one on one with supporters.
"To have the youth, number one, recognize they value what YC is doing, so they want to give back, and also especially for them, to see the community come out in such big numbers to support them," he said. "All the programs at YFC are free of charge for all the youth, and for them to see it's the community that makes that possible is obviously a huge boost to what we're doing."
Numbers continuing to grow
And according to Sawatzky, the number of youth coming through Altona YFC's doors continues to grow.
"Generally, on a drop-in night at YFC, we have anywhere from 30 to 60 kids, especially our supper night," he said. "That's generally our most popular (night), so we definitely are running overtime in the kitchen. Last year we engaged with over 400 different youth, and to see more and more kids coming through our programs, that number is only going up."
Sawatzky noted the taco buffet has grown every time it's been held since the first fundraiser in 2019. Final numbers are still being added up from Tuesday, but the previous event raised over $12,000.
You can listen to the conversation with Sheridan Sawatzky, below.