Coldest Night of the Year this Saturday

Wednesday, 21 February 2024 06:50

Lots of people will hit the streets of Woodstock, Ingersoll, and Tillsonburg for the Coldest Night of the Year this Saturday.

OXFORD COUNTY - The Coldest Night of the Year is fast approaching.

Outdoor walks will be taking place in Woodstock, Ingersoll, and Tillsonburg this Saturday to support programs that help those experiencing hurt, hunger, and homelessness in our community.

The event in Woodstock is supporting Operation Sharing, but all of the funds raised in Tillsonburg and Ingersoll be going to United Way Oxford.

Community Impact and Engagement Manager Lindsay Wilson says the money raised in Tillsonburg will support the Lighthouse transitional housing program.

"That's a program that supports people moving out of homelessness and into more permanent housing. They can stay in the home for a little bit less than a year and they have not only a shelter over their head but there is also a staff member in the home that's connecting them with job readiness, life skills and housing to move into."

The money raised in Ingersoll will support walk-in mental health counseling, food programs, and street outreach.

Scott McKauge has been organizing the Woodstock event for a few years now, and he says it will be at a new venue this Saturday.

"So we've moved again, we have to keep relocating for the size of our walk, but we're going to be at College Ave Secondary School (CASS). That's our starting point because that gymnasium is definitely big enough to house all of our attendees, volunteers, and everyone. We will be meeting there with the same timeline, 4:00 p.m. is when registration starts."

The walk in Ingersoll will begin at the Fusion Youth Centre and the walk in Tillsonburg will kick off at the Lion's Auditorium in the Community Centre.

The timeline is the same for all three events. Registration should begin at 4:00 p.m., the walk should begin at 5:00 p.m., a light meal will be served at 6:00 p.m., and everything should wrap up by 7:00 p.m.

The Woodstock event has raised $121,251 so far, making it the 16th ranked in the country as of this morning. Tillsonburg is sitting in the 115th spot with $28,957 raised, and Ingersoll is sitting in the 116th spot with $28,692. This brings the combined fundraising total for all three events to $178,900.

Scott McKauge and Lindsay Wilson stopped by the Heart FM studio to chat with Dan and Marcie on Tuesday February 20th. You can listen to the full interview below: