SASKATCHEWAN — We tend to think of Telemiracle from January to March each year, naively presuming this is when the organization does its work. As a past Kin kid, Kinette and long-time Telemiracle supporter I knew otherwise.
A visit to their office in Saskatoon on the first day of September also confirmed there is no “off-season” for Kinsmen Foundation and Telemiracle.
Executive Director Richard Kies walked me through so many of the spokes of the wheel that make these two entities work.
Being a Telemiracle chairperson involves a two-year commitment. The up-and-coming chairperson and their committee shadow the current chair and committee for a whole year before they take over the reins.
The new chairperson, along with their committee, chooses the next year’s theme and work with graphics people to design a logo. The theme “Rooted in Saskatchewan” is now consistent as Kies says, “It fully encompasses what our annual fundraising telethon is all about.”
Kinsmen Foundation is a 22-person board that reviews, on average, 1,000 applications a year. They fulfil two-year terms and they come from Kin Clubs, with a representative from every zone as well as members at large. An executive oversees the operation.
The Kinsmen Foundation board meets nine times a year from September to June. From the last meeting time in June until they re-start in the fall, this year Sept. 9, the office staff handles any emergency applications that come in.
Telemiracle has simplified the application process by putting it online at their website telemiracle.com. The grants department, which includes former Unity resident, Amanda Whyte, is part of a three-person team that fields applications and prepares them for each month’s board meeting.
Whyte has been a Kinette for 11 years serving in a variety of executive positions between Macklin and Unity clubs. She also served as foundation zone representative and was treasurer for the foundation. Her experience serves as a great asset in her position at the Telemiracle office, where she has worked for almost two years as grant assistant.
Kies says the kickoff to Telemiracle season really begins in September. Auditions for talent are in late October, adding the option of video submissions to improve opportunity for all performers and avoid travel costs.
Telemiracle 50 is also on everyone’s minds and for the past year and a half, Kies says they have been making plans to celebrate the milestone event.
A new position in the office is a fund development manager, a position now held by Carman Praski. This position was created to generate fundraising ideas, implement those ideas as well as offering support to those who seek assistance in hosting a successful fundraiser for the Saskatchewan charity.
“We don’t want to throw out old traditions, but we also want to incorporate new ones,” Kies notes.
COVID-19 forced the annual telethon to change and it has been a progression of change each year since then. Kies knows and understands people have questions about the broadcast, wondering where live audiences and performances have gone.
“The pandemic was very hard on the entertainment industry and since the gradual return from COVID-19, production personnel are in higher demand than there are people to fill those roles so that is one contributing factor to the format changes. We are slowly trying to rebuild this.
“Logistics have changed. We now use the Real District in Regina and Prairieland Park in Saskatoon. We are incorporating live performances and have started to re-introduce live audiences.”
The show will continue to evolve and Kies affirms that while the show is important it is the means to the end, which is a telethon to raise money for Telemiracle Foundation. Putting on a good show is important and it is balanced with the final outcome for this annual fundraiser.
The national cast is selected in the fall previous to the next Telemiracle, announcing the lineup in November. The producers put the cast together. Kies said the mainstays are Beverly, Brad and the Strakers. They do try to rotate the national cast to include some fresh faces.
The Telemiracle website has been invaluable for more than a decade.
Funding from this annual telethon provides funding to the people of Saskatchewan requiring special needs equipment to maintain or improve their quality of life. Funding is also provided for travel assistance for those needing to leave their community to access life-saving medical treatment. Funding has also been provided to institutions and health foundations to purchase specialized, new or innovative equipment to improve health care.
As Kinsmen, Kinette and Kin Clubs across the province are now back in session, so too, is the planning and preparation for Saskatchewan’s only telethon, coming up to number 48. The mission remains the same, uniting the province in a common goal that those behind the scenes at Kinsmen Telemiracle are working towards, even in the off-season.
“Where are we going? Higher!”
