Wagon Rides benefit Children’s Wish Foundation
Posted on August 9, 2019 by Maple Creek
BY MARCUS DAY
Why not enjoy a weekend wagon ride – and help to make a sick child’s wish come true?
For the 14th year, the Southwest Harness and Driving Club is putting on wagon rides around the picturesque Loch Leven at Cypress Hills Interprovincial Park.
As ever, Saturday’s event will raise funds for the Children’s Wish Foundation, which creates joyful experiences for children with a life-threatening illness.
Benefited
Eric Lawrence, club chairman, explained how the fundraiser had got started.
“We wanted to do something to help others,” he said. “One of our members knew people who had benefited from the foundation, so we gave it a try. We always get a really good response and make, on average, about $5,000 each year.
“Donations come from business and private citizens. I remember the car club donating a sizeable amount.”
Lawrence stimated more than $65,000 had been raised for the foundation.
“We’ve helped send children to Disneyland and Fort Walsh,” he said.
Saturday’s rides will run between 2pm and 4pm, with cash donations gratefully accepted. Visitors will have a chance to ride one of five horse-drawn wagons, each one big enough for a dozen people. A circuit of the lake usually takes around 25 minutes.
Lawrence, who lives on a ranch about eight miles out of Maple Creek, said he had been riding wagons all his adult life.
He will be at the park on Saturday with his wagon and horses.
“Each teams usually makes five rides,” he said.
The club, which started in 1999, has about 15 members.
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