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Kinsmen Radio Days brings out the best in Stettlerites

With Stettler residents opening their hearts and their wallets to help those displaced by the Fort McMurray wildfire...
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Ray Tanton

With Stettler residents opening their hearts and their wallets to help those displaced by the Fort McMurray wildfire, Scott McKenzie, chair of the Stettler Kinsmen Radio Days committee, said he wouldn't have been surprised if numbers were down this year.

Instead, the Saturday, May 14 event is on target to beat last year's fundraising tally and come in close to the $10,000 goal.

"We'll be close to (the goal)," he said. "The best we've ever done is just over $10,000. This year, we're ahead of last year, which is good considering the economy and the wildfire."

The annual event, held at the Stettler Agriplex, is the largest fundraiser for the Stettler Kinsmen, who turn 100 per cent of the money raised back into the communities of Stettler — both town and county.

Local businesses sponsor the event, either through monetary donations, food donations for the free pancake and sausage breakfast, silent auction items and demonstrations, McKenzie said. The local radio station, Q 93.3, broadcasts the event starting at 9 a.m. and runs until 1 p.m. During that time, local businesspeople read their business' advertisements on the radio, with proceeds going to the Kinsmen.

Stettler and District Fire and Rescue were at the Agriplex as well, doing a jaws of life demonstration. Before a crowd of curious adults and fascinated children, the firefighters — men and women — demolished a car. Using the various tools of their trade, they pulled off doors and popped out windshields and windows.

"The money goes to Stettler and area projects and groups," McKenzie said. "Minor sports, dance, music, playgrounds, the handibus, to name a few."

The organization usually has a few big projects on the go alongside several smaller ones it helps throughout the year.

While the Kinsmen held down the fort at the Agriplex, their sisters, the Stettler Kinettes, performed a traffic stop for charity at the intersection of Main Street and Highway 12, collecting loose change for the Cystic Fibrosis Canada, which raises money for research into and support for those with cystic fibrosis.