Despite all the challenges, the 45th edition of Telemiracle is a go and is just a month away.
The 20-hour-long telethon, raising money for Kinsmen Foundation’s efforts to cover medical-related travel expenses of people in Saskatchewan, will be broadcasted and streamed live on Feb. 27-28. "TeleMiracle, together we are family" is this year's slogan that, like many other fundraisers, is taking a new shape.
Brian Angstad, who is this year's Telemiracle chair, talked to the Mercury about what the province can expect from the upcoming show.
"This year Telemiracle will look a little different compared to years past. Last spring the world changed so Telemiracle had to adapt to the change due to COVID.
"With this year's (edition), we wanted to make sure that we still had a show to distribute to the people of Saskatchewan, and we wanted to make sure that we had a safe show for the people involved."
All the national cast entertainment and Saskatchewan talent will be pre-recorded and aired live. However, entertainers hosting the show, including Andrea Menard, Beverley Mahood, Brad Johner, Chris Henderson, Glen Suitor, Jeffery Straker, Jess Moskaluke, Jill Straker, Lisa Moen and Mac Shepherd, will be present at the location, which is Prairieland Park in Saskatoon.
Telemiracle had to reduce their crew of volunteers down drastically to the minimal number to ensure the safety of the event.
"We are working with the Saskatchewan Health Authority to make sure that we have proper social distancing and all the proper procedures for the volunteers and for everybody that will be in attendance," Angstad said.
While the Kinsmen Foundation's biggest fundraiser of the year adapted to a new format, not only did they keep the core of it, but they also added a new raffle with a whooping guaranteed prize.
"Telemiracle is very proud to announce our first-ever 50/50 raffle. You can purchase tickets on telemiracle5050.ca. The pot is starting at $25,000, so we are hoping to grow a nice size jackpot for this raffle," Andstad said.
The tickets are already available and sales end Feb. 26 at 4 p.m. Fifty per cent of sales, to a maximum prize of $3,750,000, will go to one lucky winner that will be announced during the countdown show that will start on Feb. 27 at 6:15 p.m. The Countdown to the Telemiracle will be streamed at telemiracle.com.
Telemiracle never sets a goal for the total, as they are grateful for anything they receive to be able to help the people of Saskatchewan. And every year the generosity of the province and its residents is fascinating.
"We appreciate absolutely every dollar that is raised. It's amazing how the people of Saskatchewan rally to support Telemiracle," Angstad said.
The organizing committee has been working on the event since March 2020 and will keep going all the way until the end of the show to ensure another great experience.
People are invited to get comfortable at home, and either tune in to CTV on their TVs or stream live from telemiracle.com.
"Join us as we ring those phones and watch as Saskatchewan, once again, makes miracles happen!" says the Telemiracle website.
