Operation Red Nose Thompson was among the top five programs in the province for the number of rides given, the number of volunteer nights contributed and the amount of donations received, a Jan. 3 press release from Safety Services Manitoba shows.
Thompson’s Operation Red Nose service, in which three-person designated driver teams drive clients home in the clients’ own vehicles on weekends from late November up to the end of December, as well as on New Year’s Eve, gave 355 rides in 2019 and took in $8,197.55 in donations, both the fourth-highest totals in the province. They also had 195 volunteers, fifth-most in Manitoba.
Thompson beat out Northern Manitoba’s other Operation Red Nose programs in The Pas and Flin Flon. The service in The Pas gave out 330 rides, while in Flin Flon it provided 216. Flin Flon had 116 volunteers and The Pas 133. Flin Flon received $3,089.25 in donations while The Pas received $5,277.65.
In 11 Operation Red Nose programs across the province, 2,370 volunteers provided 4,443 rides and raised more than $95,000. The donations received are distributed by each community’s program to organizations serving youth.
“Operation Red Nose had a successful season," the Thompson committee said on their Facebook page Jan. 1. “Thank you to our volunteers, our sponsors, business and community members who donated snacks or meals to keep the volunteers going and the businesses who donated gas cards. Without you this wouldn’t be possible. Thank you for helping keep the streets of Thompson safer this holiday season.”
