With the snow and slushy roads this weekend, it truly felt like Christmas had arrived in Estevan a little early. Over the weekend, the St. Joseph's Hospital Foundation held the annual Festival of Trees Fundraiser, which featured the Kinette Christmas Marketplace, the Red Carpet Christmas Gala, and the Hometown Family Fun Day.
Over 70 vendors showed up at the annual Christmas Marketplace by the Estevan Kinettes on Saturday morning. Executive director for the foundation, Lori Gervais, was elated to see the amount of local businesses and customers that showed up to the marketplace. "[The Kinettes] have done this for so long that they've got it cased. They're always such huge supporters. It's one of the best, and again, the kickoff to Christmas, right? So it's been something that they've been super supportive of and I think the community looks forward to it every year."
Later that evening, a sold-out Affinity Place saw sponsors, volunteers, community members and businesses walk the red carpet for the Red Carpet Christmas Gala. It featured bartenders and mixologists from different bars and liquor stores throughout Estevan, a silent auction, and a live auction hosted by Mack Auctions. One of the show-stopping features most patrons raved about is the catering provided by EB's Dining. Local musician Teagan Littlechief serenaded the crowd with timeless Christmas classics throughout the evening. Also, a Black Tie Bingo saw three winners take home a $500 and a $1,000 Visa gift card, as well as an e-bike, respectively. "Everything was fantastic. Of course, the community support is always unbelievable to us."
The gala saw the appearance of Elaine Walkom, the businesswoman who donated $2 million towards bringing MRI services to St. Joseph's Hospital. "I'm really glad she could attend. It worked out well to have her there to really see that the community is so grateful to her and the hospital, of course. We were just very happy to have her and show her the support that she deserves," Gervais added.
Sunday was a day for all the kids who were on Santa's 'nice' list, as families throughout the southeast came out for the Hometown Family Fun Day. The event saw arts, crafts and games provided by Souris Valley Museum and Southeast Advocates. Local volunteers read Christmas stories to children, with the first 200 kids receiving books to take home. Most kids sprinted toward the three bouncy castles that were available in the multipurpose room. Santa was available at the Estevan Market Mall, hoping to let the Big Man know what they'd like for Christmas this year. As well, McDonald's Estevan joined in on all the fun by providing milk and cookies to kids 10 and under with a donation.
"It is a kickoff to the Christmas season. The community showed up. We've got kids everywhere. Everybody's having a great time and having these other community groups help out has given us a great, great heads up because [the foundation has] way less to do on ourselves," Gervais expressed.
All three events were held in support of the St. Joseph's Hospital Foundation's pursuit of bringing MRI services to southeast Saskatchewan. Sunday's family fun day event was free for everyone due to various sponsors, with donations from patrons encouraged. As for what's next for the foundation, Gervais noted that fundraising will continue well into next year.
"The rest of the year will be spent on year-end giving. There are people that come in for the end of the year for tax purposes. Then, we will just be gearing up right away for the next year of fundraising. MRI is still busy. I have a few more meetings to get to and a handful of RMs yet to speak to."
The fundraising goal for the MRI project is $6.5 million dollars. As of writing, the foundation is at $4.3 million raised.