OLDS — The École Olds High School Interact Club raised $6,000 for Kirsten’s Place, an emergency shelter currently under construction, during the club’s 13th annual Interact Banquet.
About 100 people attended the banquet, held March 11 in the school’s commons area. The Interact Club is a junior Rotary club.
Each year, the money raised during the occasion goes to a cause or charity of the club’s choice.
Fundraising efforts included a silent auction, a raffle and a dessert auction. Cakes auctioned off fetched prices as high as $450.
Bailey Sisson, a school staff liaison with the club, believes the money raised this year is on par with what the club raised last year.
The emergency shelter is named after Kirsten Gardner who was killed in a case of domestic violence in Bowden in March 2021.
Her parents, Patti and Brian Gardner were the keynote speakers during the banquet.
Brian is building the emergency shelter with the help of various subtrades, a project that began May 1 last year. He told the crowd that it should be completed in the next few weeks.
Patti told the crowd that the day she learned of her daughter’s death is a day that will never be forgotten.
“Kirsten Gardner was taken away from us that day, leaving behind two adorable twin boys that turned six this past January, and a heartbroken family lost a great 25 year-old angel.
“She was a victim of domestic violence. She had no idea how bad it was and the danger she was in.”
Patti noted that according to the Discreet Investigations & Security on their website, more than one in four women and one in six men in Canada will have experienced some form of domestic violence.
“Losing a family member through such a tragedy should never be something in Canada,” she said.
“Losing Kirsten has set a huge hole in our hearts,” Patti said. “She walked the same halls as you now do.”
“She was loved by everyone she came in contact with from her school, of sports teams and coaches, teachers, 4H members, co-workers, her friends and most of all, her family,” Patti said.
Brian spoke of the importance of Kirsten’s Place which will be operated by the Mountain View Emergency Shelter Society, which was formed back in 2008.
The purpose of the shelter is to support and provide a safe place for people in domestic violence situations.
He said when completed, Kirsten’s place be “a safe lockdown facility, utilize a key card system similar to a hotel” with access to a full kitchen.
He cited a quote by famous Catholic nun Mother Teresa, founder of the Missionaries of Charity, later named Saint Teresa of Calcutta: “I alone cannot change the world, but I can cast a storm across the water to create many ripples.”
“You don't just build it for a generation. You build it for generations to come,” Brian said.
He said healthy relationships create healthy children which in turn create healthy communities.
Brian acknowledged the big crowd that turned out for the occasion.
“We'd like to really thank you for everything you guys have done throughout,” he said.
