Warren Ellis started selling tickets and gathering donations in January for this year’s Grass Roots and Cowboy Boots fundraiser for the Prince County Hospital.
Then, in March, given the coronavirus (COVID-19 strain) pandemic, he had to cancel them all and start over. Organizers had to come up with a new plan to meet Chief Public Health Office specifications and decide on a new date.
But Ellis says he wasn't worried about getting the money the hospital relies on.
“I sensed right from the start that the people knew how important, ever more important, health care on P.E.I. was,” he said.
He was right not to be worried, as the annual fundraiser pulled in $1.6 million — enough to cover the complete list of needed equipment on the PCH foundation website.
Some of those items include cardiac monitors, a complete blood count analyzer and dialysis machine, said Liz Maynard, president of the hospital foundation.
“(Dialysis machines) are a priority need, pretty much one a year. It goes to show just how much use is needed for the dialysis unit in the PCH.”
Instead of gathering at banquet tables at Credit Union Place for the now huge event, those who bought tickets this year had their meals placed in their vehicle trunks to take home to enjoy.
More than 1,600 drive-thru meals, the most ever served at the event, were given out by about 100 volunteers on Saturday afternoon.
After the drive-thru, a small-scale live auction was held with two 50-person cohorts in the Veteran’s Convention Centre at Credit Union Place.
The reduction in numbers was definitely the biggest change, said Maynard.
“That in itself creates a different feel … but there was good auction support within the crowd.”
During the event and auction, donations up to $100,000 were announced along with plenty of smaller pledges.
“There was a spirit of wanting to give and they all stepped up to the plate. We had a banner night,” said Ellis.
One spirit, who remained anonymous, called Ellis during the event and confirmed a donation of $1 million.
Ellis was modest for his part and wants everyone involved to know how grateful he is, from those who bought tickets, to those who gave and purchased auction items, everyone who donated and those who volunteered.
“Everybody in the foundation office … all stepped up and everybody worked together. It was a team effort and I was just proud to be a facilitator.”
As is part of the tradition, someone walked away from the night with a new Jeep courtesy of Ellis’s Summerside Chrysler Dodge. This year it was Summerside’s Dwayne MacNeill.
