OLDS — A radiothon held May 10 for the Mountain View Emergency Shelter Society (MVESS) raised about $45,000, and thanks to some generous donors, could bring in $150,000 or more, MVESS president Joe Carignan says.
That’s because the Rotary Club of Olds and local resident Jim Thompson each pledged to match the amount of money raised during the radiothon up to the event’s goal of $50,000.
And during the radiothon, the Lions Club presented a cheque for $15,000.
As a result, Carignan says the society could end up shortly with a total of about $400,000 for construction of an emergency shelter.
"Right now we're sitting just under $45,000. But we've got a couple people that phoned and said they're going bring in some donations today so I'm assuming for the next couple days we may get some more donations,” he said during an interview with the Albertan Thursday.
Last year’s radiothon brought in close to $50,000 as well.
The annual radiothon is a joint project of CAB-K Broadcasting, Royal LePage Wildrose Real Estate and others.
The society helps obtain safe spaces for adults -- and often their children -- in the region fleeing domestic violence. It operates 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
It also promotes awareness of family violence and advocates for violence prevention.
MVESS has existed for about 11 years, but as of yet, has no facility to directly provide shelter itself. Clients have to be housed in other facilities in Rocky Mountain House, Red Deer or Calgary.
The emergency shelter is slated to be built on a triangular piece of land at the south end of 50th Avenue at 54th Street, bordered by the CP Rail tracks.
It will be called Kirsten’s Place in tribute to Kirsten (Gardner) O’Donoghue, who was killed in Bowden in March, 2021 in what is believed to be a case of domestic violence.
Carignan said a contractor is reviewing costs for the project in light of inflation.
He's hopeful that when those figures are all crunched, construction of the project can go ahead this year.
However, sod likely won’t be turned until summer, well behind a previous prediction that construction could start this spring.
During the interview, it was suggested to Carignan that the pricing review underway might boost the cost well beyond $400,000.
He conceded that’s a possibility, but noted that many subtrades have offered to do the work for free. Besides, he said, the MVESS is working with the Town in an effort to obtain a federal grant which could help cover costs.
Meanwhile, Carignan is busy filling out forms to get things rolling. He’s talking with ATCO and other companies with a goal of getting gas and other utilities installed ahead of time.
“I have to try and get that started, or an estimate as to when they can start, because I don't know everybody's timelines and everybody's busy,” he said.
Carignan said he’s hopeful construction of the building can begin this summer. He said starting construction in August or September would be “a worst case scenario.”
However, he said, “(it) can't start ‘till I can pay them.”
When construction does begin, Carignan is not sure how long it will take to be completed, but he’s hoping the facility can open its doors early next year.
