The Coldest Night of the Year is an annual fundraiser that has been growing in popularity in recent years.
The event is a family-friendly, walking fundraiser that supports local charities in the communities where it is held.
Funds raised at this year’s event are earmarked to support the community's hungry and homeless through Guelph's HOPE House.
HOPE House provides front-line services and support in the form of a choice-based, points-based Food Market, HOPE Stylin’ Haircuts and Clothing Bureau (points-based), our community Edu-Kitchen, HOPE-in-Motion, a Back-to-School Backpack Program, a daily Café, Christmas hampers and more to any Guelph resident living in poverty.
“The beauty of this event is that it is for everyone," said HOPE House development director Lindsay Sytsma, who is also helping to organize the Guelph event. "If you want to put in a team of your friends and family, join someone else’s team, walk by yourself or volunteer with us, all you have to do is go to the event website. You can do everything from there.”
Last year, more than 300 volunteers and walkers participated in the event, raising nearly $15,000 more than the fundraising target.
“We smashed our last year’s goal which was $45,000,” said Sytsma, who noted that the 2016 goal is set for $50,000.
The Coldest Night of The Year is a great opportunity for Guelph residents to get out into the community and make an impact.
Blaire Caldwell was one of the participants in 2015.
“It was a great time to get together with friends and support a great cause," Caldwell said. "There were people in the community cheering us on from their cars or as they were walking by.”
Sytsma notes that winter can be a time when people tend to stay inside their warm homes more often.
“For many in our community, they don't have this luxury," she said. "By getting out in the cold of night, we experience, even in the smallest way, what it might be like to walk the cold streets at night.”
It is the development of a greater awareness of homelessness, an issue that affects nearly every Canadian city, that is one of the primary goals of the Coldest Night of the Year.
The HOPE House director encouraged everyone in the community to participate in any way they can. For those unable to participate in the walk, there is still an opportunity to participate in the event by donating to one of the teams through the event website.
The Coldest Night of the Year takes place on February 20 beginning at 4 p.m.
Participants are asked to meet at 75 Norfolk Street at HOPE House.
Find out more about the event here.
