By Taylor Chartrand

Suffield firefighters back again to support Santa Claus fund

Nov 25, 2018 | 1:53 PM

Medicine Hat, AB – CFB Suffield firefighters rolled into town today and no, it wasn’t to fight a fire.

The fire crew was outside of Walmart to gather cash and toy donations for the Santa Claus fund.

Firefighter Brant Becker took a minute out of his busy schedule to do an interview and he said Hatters are always in the giving mood when it comes to helping out their community.

“We’ve been doing this for roughly ten years and I’d say we’ve raised over $50,000 in that time-frame. We have an awesome community here in Medicine Hat that loves supporting these charities.”

Becker said for the Suffield crew, doing events like this are a no-brainer.

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“CFB firefighters and the Santa Claus fund have built a good relationship over the years. We’re more than happy to be able to do this on an annual basis. This is a great charity and a good way to support the kids in our community.”

Becker then added that a lot of people are unaware of the struggles that families deal with in our community.

“There are a lot of people around the holidays that are struggling financially. This is a way for them to receive the support they need. That’s what Christmas is all about, the giving season.”

When it comes to giving, the Santa Claus fund is looking for specific items.

“We received a list of what they were looking for and we pass that list along to shoppers as they enter Walmart.”

Those items (for boys and girls) would include fisher price toys, board games, books, speakers, headphones, cologne/perfume, gift-cards, shaving kits, stocking stuffers and cash donations…just to name a few.

Now even though the holiday season can be costly, Becker said even spare change can go a long way.

“Sometimes we have people take the change out of their pocket and throw it in a boot. At the end of it, we count all the cash up and last year we raised $7,500. Any support is appreciated.”

If you weren’t able to contribute to this toy run and want to do so, the Suffield firefighters will be back at Walmart again next Sunday, December 2nd from 10 a.m to 3 p.m.