BIG VALLEY BULLETIN -- Last Thursday, Aug. 25 was Big Valley’s turn to “put on the pink” for the Pinkest Little Town in the West contest and the unaccommodating weather did nothing stop us from having a great time. With ominous black clouds hanging over us, everyone spent the morning between cloudbursts, “pinking up” the village to be ready for the arrival of the Wild Pink Yonder riders and Alberta Prairie’s Teddy Bear Special. When we were through, the village looked spectacularly pink.
Twenty minutes before the train arrived, the skies opened up and the Wild Pink Yonder riders paraded up Railway Avenue under a deluge of rain and hail. Then, with barely five minutes to spare, the rain stopped, and we all gathered at the station to greet the train.
What an amazing job Alberta Prairie did decorating. The train pulled into Big Valley flying great big black flags on the front with pink breast cancer ribbons. Each side of the locomotive wore huge signs that said, “Pulling for a Cure”. Every passenger car was decorated with pink ribbons and pompoms, sporting signs with inspirational words like hope, victory and miracles. It was truly a sight to behold.
When the passengers disembarked, we began the cookie exchange. As an imaginative fund raiser, every person on the train (there were hundreds) was given a sugar cookie with pink icing on top. Meanwhile, every person in Big Valley, including all the Wild Pink Yonder riders, was given a sugar cookie with white icing on top. The goal was to exchange every white cookie with every pink cookie and for every cookie exchanged, Alberta Prairie planned to give Wild Pink Yonder a dollar.
Then came the “Pinkest Little Carnival” hosted by the Big Valley Library but operated by a group of Big Valley juvenile volunteers. Our kids did an extraordinary job – it was awesome to watch them running all the games and making sure the visiting kids all had a blast. Parents expressed their admiration with the job our kids did – especially with such a big crowd and the uncooperative weather. There were rave reviews from all who came out to play. The children’s delighted expressions made the effort worthwhile. Big Valley kids rock! We couldn’t be prouder.
A special thanks to Wilf Dressler, who rallied around to help us set up the carnival, decorate the Wi-Fi park and supervise. You really came through for us.