"People have been so, so generous to us."
Andy Thiessen, Chief of Morden Fire & Rescue, shared the sentiment after announcing the annual Boot Drive at last weekend's Corn & Apple Festival parade raised $12,456.65 in support of Muscular Dystrophy Canada.
This is a stark contrast to the $300 generated at the parade's very first Boot Drive 38 years ago.
"It was a start and now, people know that we're coming, and they collect throughout the year," noted Thiessen.
He gave a special shout out to the kids who lined the parade route, piggy banks in-hand, tipping them upside down to dump the change they'd collected over the year into a boot.
"It still blows me away. It's very humbling and it's nice to see that people are helping us out with that."
Over the decades, the Boot Drive has also grown into a family event for the department and its members.
"They are now involving their children in the parade route. The kids just love it. They look forward to it," said Thiessen, noting this family involvement is something he cherishes about the fund-raising effort.
This being Thiessen's last year leading the Boot Drive as Fire Chief, an effort he helped start in Morden all those years ago, the weekend's canvassing came with some emotions as memories from the years-gone-by came flooding back. Still, he credits the people that show up year after year to line the parade route, and those who walk the route, for making the Boot Drive as successful as it is today.
With files from Robyn Wiebe