OLDS — In roughly a month, members of the Rotary Club of Olds will help drive five fire trucks and three wheelchair-accessible vans from southern Alberta to Mexico for communities to utilize there.
The journey from Olds begins Sept. 28. Drivers from Olds include project coordinator Randy Smith, Donna Smith, Steve Turner, Mary Turner, Jim Crawford, Debby Crawford, Patsy Hickok and Allan Hickok.
They’ll drive down to Lethbridge to pick up vehicles and drivers there. Then the whole group will head down to Mazatlan, an approximately seven-day journey.
The annual Los Amigos project, as it’s called, was created in 2011 after a few Rotarians from Lethbridge were vacationing in Mexico and saw the need for emergency vehicles and medical supplies in Mazatlán and surrounding towns.
During that first year, three retired school buses from Lethbridge were donated and packed with medical equipment. Rotary club members drove them down to Mexico. Since then, they have returned 11 times.
Now, the Rotary Club of Olds works with many other clubs across District 5360 on the project. District 5360 includes all Rotary clubs in Alberta from Ponoka south as well as clubs in southwest Saskatchewan.
On Saturday, July 27, 16 drivers participating in the Los Amigos project gathered at École Olds High School to learn about driving the vehicles and how to make the trip safely.
There was a lot to absorb.
“We learned the proper hand signals to spot vehicles backing up, parallel parking, weaving through narrow passages and parking in tight spots,” said Patsy Hickok of the Olds club, who will be driving down for the second time.
Some drivers had to obtain their air brakes endorsement because four of the five fire trucks making the trip require require that training.
Other drivers needed to become comfortable maneouvering these large vehicles.
That included being able to properly back them up, navigate road patterns and learn each vehicle’s unique features.
Preparations also included making sure the vehicles are road worthy. That was done with the help from Allan Hickok and Olds College heavy duty mechanic students in training.
Also, countless hours were spent seeking funds from Rotary clubs in the district as well as from local businesses and families.
In the entire history of the Los Amigos project, 60 vehicles have been donated and driven down to Mexico and only one is no longer in service.
“That old bus just gave up the ghost and had to be retired,” said former project coordinator Karl Samuels, a member of the Lethbridge Sunrise Rotary club.
Rotary clubs across District 5360 are very grateful for all the help and donations they’ve received for this project.
If anyone would like to donate to the Los Amigos project, they’re encouraged to contact Randy Smith via the Rotary Club of Olds.
