Yellowknife’s annual ‘Coldest Night of the Year’ walk for charity took place on Saturday.
The nationwide event is a family-friendly walk that features 2km and 5km walking distances to help raise money for homelessness in the city.
This year’s event was the first time it was put on by Home Base YK instead of the Salvation Army who hosted in previous years.
Dozens of Yellowknife locals came to participate and donate money to show support for the cause including representatives from the City and Territorial Government.
Councilor Steve Payne and Ben Hendriksen cooked chili for everyone to enjoy after the event and MLA Katrina Nokleby made an appearance at the Home Base headquarters.
“I think it’s a good reminder for people that don’t have these types of issues that there are a lot of people that are facing home security issues or homelessness, so it’s important to remind the public that they need to be aware of these issues,” Nokleby said.
“This is pretty exciting, I’m on the board for Home Base so when it came up that we were going to do this event I happily volunteered to make some chili so we’re gearing up for a good night,” Payne told My True North Now
“I think it’s a matter of bringing the community together and having the community support, both people who are looking for a warm place to have a good time and building a sense of community between everyone,” Hendriksen added.
According to the CNOY website, Since 2011, the Coldest Night of the Year has raised over $50 Million across Canada with 100% of proceeds going to Coldest Night charity partners.
Previous Associate Director of Home Base YK Traci Mercer also attended the event and says that when the opportunity came to host the event, Home Base was eager to be involved.
“We definitely think it’s a worthwhile cause, it’s a lot of work but it’s something that we believe in so that’s why we decided to take it on,” Mercer said.
The St. Pats Interact student organization was at the event to represent students who believe in making a change in the city.
“In Yellowknife, homelessness around winter time is such a big deal, our school is usually freezing in the winter and we don’t actually know how the homeless feel so we think it’s very important for our school to show up here and say that we support them through their hard times.” St. Pats Interact President ‘Isha’ tells My True North Now.
By the end of the night, several participants came out to walk and show support and Home Base YK says they were ‘excited’ about the turnout.
