INNISFAIL – The summer heat cooled down in town during the early afternoon of Aug. 10 as a short burst of rain fell.
But it did not matter for scores and scores of Innisfailians. There was an annual mission to take care of at the local Dairy Queen.
The line-ups were long and constant.
It was Blizzard time in Innisfail, as well as in Olds and Didsbury.
Citizens and businesses across the region were scooping up the famed ice cream treat, sometimes by the dozen to support the annual Miracle Treat Day; a long held tradition of helping make miracles happen for children and their families.
Net proceeds from every Blizzard treat sold are donated to the Alberta Children’s Hospital Foundation.
Brett Kemball is the manager of Innisfail’s Dairy Queen. His family has owned and operated the local Dairy Queen since 1989; first at a Henday Mall location and years later at its current Main Street site.
He said Miracle Treat Day, which in 2023 is celebrating its 21st year, is by far the restaurant’s busiest day of the year.
“Innisfail has always done a really good job of supporting this great cause. We see a lot of people from the community, and businesses have really come out to support us,,” said Kemball. “Johns Manville ordered over 215 Blizzard coupons this year. They've done that for many years.
"Countless other businesses are coming in ordering upwards of 10, 15 and 30 Blizzards for Miracle Treat Day and that really helps us reach our goal.”
He said since 2003, the Innisfail Dairy Queen has raised more than $185,000 for the Children's Miracle Network and the Alberta Children's Hospital Foundation, not including 2023.
“Our big goal this year is to raise over $15,000 to get over that $200,000 mark,” said Kemball. “I think it would tie a record. 2018 was our record year and it was just shy of 15,000. It is a lofty goal for us.”
He said all money collected from Blizzard sales, pre-orders and coupons will ultimately go to the Alberta Children's Hospital in Calgary.
As for the cause’s ongoing popularity, Kemball believes people realized during and after the COVID-19 pandemic how important the health care system is for people living in Canada.
“Just this cause alone, the Children's Miracle Network is working with children's hospitals all across Canada and in the United States,” said Kemball. “Helping sick kids and their families is a cause many people feel near and dear to their hearts.
“At the end of the day people are passionate about helping those that need to go to the children's hospital,” he said. “It doesn't hurt that the best way to support it is by eating a Blizzard.
“People like to treat themselves and today they can feel good that it goes towards a good cause.”
Meanwhile, Robert Graham, the owner of the Olds franchise who co-manages the location with son Geoff, did not have an opportunity by Aug. 11 to calculate the total amount they would be contributing.
However, he said 1,241 Blizzards were sold this year, which was up from last year’s total of 1,100 when almost $6,000 was raised, including cash contributions from a donation jar.
“It would appear that it was a more successful year than last year,” he said.
Although Puneet Sharma, owner of the Didsbury DQ, had not yet crunched the numbers by Aug. 11, he estimated about $5,000 was raised.
That was down a bit from last year, said Sharma, citing the hailstorm that swept through the area on the afternoon of the fundraiser, which reduced the amount of traffic coming through their doors.
But he was nevertheless pleased with how everything turned out.
Sharma noted the storm subsided and many customers dropped by throughout the evening.
He praised the community for coming out and generating most of the entire day’s sales in just a matter of hours.
Albertan editor Simon Ducatel contributed to this story.
