Day 1 of the Saskatchewan Critical Care on the Air Radiothon for STARS is in the flight logs, with $185,000 raised for the organization responsible for over 50,000 missions in western Canada since its 1985 inception.
Day 2 of 2 runs Wednesday from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. across 39 stations in Saskatchewan, including all of Golden West's.
STARS flew 1,075 missions in Saskatchewan during their last fiscal year. But their care goes beyond that.
"People may not realize that STARS is more than a helicopter," said Terri Strunk, STARS’ chief fundraising and brand officer. "Through our Emergency Link Centre, we field roughly 99 emergency calls for service every day across Saskatchewan and Western Canada. We contribute to critical care virtually, every day, thousands of times in a year."
The provincial government provides approximately 50 per cent of the funds needed to operate STARS in Saskatchewan, and the STARS Foundation must raise the remaining $10 million annually through fundraisers like Critical Care on the Air.
The goal of this year's radiothon is $400,000. You can donate online or call the Viterra Lifeline at 1-877-507-8277.