MAY 9, 2006
Hanna RCMP officers raise funds for cancer research
By Fred Stockton
Valley Times staff writer
Hanna RCMP officers and community members raised more than $23,000 for the Canadian Cancer Society at a special Cops for Cancer head shaving event this past Saturday in the Town of Hanna. Twenty-six people had their heads shaved, and in some cases mustaches and eyebrows were also shaved off, to raise money for cancer research. Overall the event raised $23,783.87 for the Canadian Cancer Society.
�Cst. Larry Peyton was the driving force behind this effort and this day,� said Hanna RCMP Staff Sergeant Doug Dupin. �He worked hard and the result explains itself. Hanna is an involved community.�
Peyton organized the event which took place at the Royal Canadian Legion Hall in Hanna.
In addition to the head shaving, there were also various displays such as a fire truck and a police car on display which people could sit in and have a professional picture taken or a variety of other events such as a barbeque outside featuring smokies and pop supplied by the Hanna IGA. There was also a silent auction as well as a raffle table.
Inside the Legion Hall there were displays from Citizens on Patrol, the Calgary Police Service Ironman Team, who also sent three of their members to the head shaving, as well as games and face painting for the kids.
The head shaving began at 11:30 a.m. with Cst. Alex Giroux of the Hanna RCMP detachment along with Quentin Moench and Bob Machum of the Hanna Fish and Game Association followed by Bob Brown from Q91 Radio.
Cst. Ray Scott from Langley, B.C., Rachel Mohl from the Hanna Fire Department, and Audrey and Calvin Smith also had their heads shaved.
Perry Yake lost his beard, moustache and hair as did Special Constable John Armstrong from Special Areas.
Cst. Pat Gay and his son Alex raising $245 and had their heads shaved followed by Chris and Cole Olsen.
Corrine and Shane Galerneau were next in line, raising approximately $1,619.
Peyton himself raised $3,320 to have his head shaved, while senior Charlie Fielding brought in $644.
Fielding recounted being in Winnipeg during the flood of 1948. �We were a lot worse off than this past year�s flood,� he said. �I found myself in the company of a nurse who told me about a cancer clinic. I said that this was a death sentence. Well, I am here to tell you I was told that not everyone dies from cancer. I then visited the W.W. Cross Cancer Clinic in Edmonton in 1983 and there the nurse told me of a 60 per cent survival rate. Would it not be nice to be 100 per cent accurate.�
Dupin was another highlight of the day when he lost his moustache and hair. �Even my kids have never seen me without my moustache, never mind my wife,� Dupin said. He raised approximately $3,015 with $1,600 raised on Friday to ensure that Dupin�s promise to cut his hair would follow. Peyton canvassed the entire business sector in Hanna by phone and sure enough the money was raised.
Dupin�s wife brought along a paper bag decorated for the occasion. �I was going to put this on his pillow, but decided to bring it along,� she said.
Jim Stroud, owner of The Lazy J Caf� in Hanna, made it back home for the fundraiser after being in hospital in Calgary. Tribute was made to Stroud for his efforts in the first days of the contest with promoting the event.
Peyton told the crowd of the overwhelming job Stroud did to get his sponsorship on the road to success.
Stroud recently underwent heart surgery and was given a standing ovation from the crowd.
Once again the total of $23,783.87 for the day was presented to the Canadian Cancer Society by Cst. Larry Peyton, who gave a large cheque to Calgary Police Service member Maureen Bidfell.
A total of five mascots were in Hanna for the day and were driven around Hanna in an antique fire truck driven by Adrian Mohl of the Hanna Fire Department. Safety Bear from the RCMP Depot Division, Dudley the Dragon from Drumheller and the Drumheller Dragons, the A&W Root Bear, Wainwright�s Billy the Bull and The Duck from Hanna entertained the crowd in the hall between hair cuts and shaves.
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