The icing has been added to the cake for what's been a special year for the Cochrane Historical Archival Preservation Society (CHAPS).
The nonprofit volunteer organization celebrated its 25th anniversary, erected a commemorative wooden statue in front of their Cochrane Museum, opened the doors of the historic Westerson cabin to the public for the first time, launched a successful e-bike tour downtown, and were named parade marshal by the Cochrane and Areas Event Society (CAES) for the annual Labour Day Parade.
Yesterday, Marina Chabbert, of CAES, presented a total of $3,850 to CHAPS from the Labour Day Parade, $100 of which came from the Calgary Stampede, who were voted to have the most entertaining float.
In recent years, CAES has had the parade marshal decided where the proceeds from the parade are donated.
"We collect the money, but we give it back as well, not only for the businesses that we collect from, but from the winning entries," explains Chabbert, "Everything gets donated back somewhere, so it's a win-win situation."
"It's fun as a committee to organize this and to connect all of these people and organizations to help each other out, because we are such a great community," says Chabbert.
In this case, CHAPS is a nonprofit that will be using the funds to repair and upgrade their historical signs around town.
"We have approximately 13 to 15 plaques around the town and many of them need upgrading, and we've got to put QR codes on them to bring them up to date for our tours," explains Mike Taylor of CHAPS. "So, this money will be used for renewing revitalizing all our historic signs in front of the historic buildings around town."
In collaboration with the Rocky View Taproom, CHAPS lead two sold out guided tours to many of the historical buildings in the downtown core on a giant 16-person e-bike. Taylor says they plan to offer more bike and walking tours next year.
CHAPS welcome more members to help operate the museum and participate in their activities throughout the year.
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