Manning the Camera's at Shaw Cable

A big part of the success of Operation Red Nose is the support we receive from local media outlets in the form of press coverage. Operation Red Nose would like to take this opportunity to recognize and thank Shaw Cable for their continued support and coverage of the Red Nose campaign.
I popped by the Shaw office and wrangled together a bunch of the many Shaw employees for a group shot. They even let me man the camera for a few minutes. It looks good on me don’t you think?

Five Star's for Five Star Embroidery

This year Operation Red Nose volunteers are keeping toasty warm on those bitter winter nights thanks to a generous donation of winter jackets from Five Star Embroidery. The jackets were embroidered with both the Operation Red Nose and PacificSport logo’s to help identify volunteers when out on the road. Thanks Five Star!
Here I am with Feron Walker Program Coordinator (left) wearing one of the donated volunteer jackets and a group of Five Star employees.

Rockin' Out with Wolf and Wave Hosts Dave, Kim and Jaimie

Today I visited Island Radio, the home of Nanaimo’s Best Music, The Wave 102.3 and Nanaimo’s Rock Station, The Wolf 106.9. Operation Red Nose has been fortunate enough to have the support of both stations encouraging listeners to make Red Nose their last call before hitting the road.
Pictured to my left are Dave and Kim of The Wave’s Morning Show and to my right is Jaimie Hilts of The Wolf’s Midday Show.

Revving Up Red Nose

The work of a Mascot is never done. Today I’m pumping gas at Mid-Island CO-OP. With me are Mid-Island CO-OP’s Community Relations Manager, Nicole Shaw (centre) and PacificSport Communications Coordinator, Allison Parsley (right).
To date Red Nose volunteers have driven over 8200 km to keep Nanaimo's roads safe. Each year CO-OP supports Operation Red Nose through donated fuel vouchers to reimburse those volunteer drivers for their fuel expenses.

Weekend Results - December 15-16th

Congratulations and thanks to everyone involved in Operation Red Nose on Friday and Saturday night December 15th and 16th. 50 volunteers responded to 141 calls, driving over 3090 km. A total of 340 people were delivered home safely over the course of the two nights.

Want a Free Criminal Record Check? Volunteer with Red Nose

Corporal Dave Boyce of Nanaimo Community Police Services seen here with me and Communications Coordinator Allison Parsley of PacificSport. Corporal Boyce and his team support Red Nose each year by supplying our volunteer criminal record checks free of charge. With 165 volunteers to date this year we at Red Nose know were keeping you very busy and we thank you for your tireless efforts.

Thrifty Foods Puts Smiles in the Bag for Red Nose

This is Thrifty Foods - Port Place Store Manager, Dan Zapotichny and me bagging some groceries for tonight's Operation Red Nose service. Thrifty Foods sponsors Red Nose through a generous donation of Smile Cards allowing us to keep our volunteers well fed and happy on all service nights.
Thanks for your continued support!

Nanaimo News Bulletin Covers Red Nose Story

Nanaimo News Bulletin Publisher Roy Linder and I reading all about our record breaking night last Saturday December 9th.
Roy and the Bulletin have been fantastic supporters of Operation Red Nose, going above and beyond to help get out the Red Nose message.
Special thanks to reporter Jenn Marshall for her tireless coverage of our progress and events.

Tim Hortons Keeps Volunteer Engines Running

Wallace Street Tim Hortons General Manager, Mitch Forrest helps me out with a cup of hot coffee for the road.
Special thanks to Tim Hortons for keeping our volunteer engines running by supplying hot beverages on all Operation Red Nose Service nights.

Budget Helps Red Nose Drive You Home Safely

Here I am with Budget Car and Truck Rentals Location Manager, Brad Wilson and PacificSport Communications Coordinator, Allison Parsley.
This is the third year that Budget has sponsored Operation Red Nose as the official Transportation Sponsor for the Red Nose campaign in Nanaimo. Thanks for your continued support Budget.

Nanaimo Daily News Spreads Red Nose Message

Here I am with Nanaimo Daily News Publisher, Curt Duddy.
Special thanks to Nanaimo Daily News for helping us get the Red Nose message out through their continued support and media coverage of the Operation Red Nose campaign.

Tom Harris Cellular - Official Telecommunications Sponsor

Tom Harris Cellular in partnership with Telus is the official Telecommunications Sponsor of Operation Red Nose in Nanaimo.
PacificSport thanks you for your continued support.

Pictured from left to right are Jessica Hodgson, John Creighton, Operation Red Nose Mascot Rudy, and Kevin Smith.

Weekend Results - December 8th and 9th

The numbers have been tallied and the results are in. 57 Operation Red Nose volunteers responded to 139 calls on December 8th and 9th to return over 300 people home safely. Total distance driven was a whopping 3432 km. That's like driving from Victoria to Port Hardy and back again more than 3 and a half times!
Saturday night broke a record for us with 90 calls responded to. This is the first time in our eleven year history that this kind of volume was recorded on a night other than New Years Eve. Special thanks to Malaspina's Criminology students who came out in full force over the two nights to volunteer their time. Without their help we surely would not have been able to respond to all those calls!
Thanks again for making responsible choices Nanaimo!

Friday Night Pub Tour and Results

On Friday December 8th, 23 Red Nose volunteers attended to 49 calls (103 passengers), driving a total of 1140km to get partygoers home safely. Thanks to Malaspina's Criminology Students taking for supplying many of those much needed volunteers. Showing their enthusiasm and dedication to the program, the Criminology students will be back again in full force on Saturday night.

I had the chance to get out and visit a few of the Operation Red Nose Pub Sponsors again on Friday night. We visited the Wheatsheaf and Cranberry Arms both out in Cedar, then on to the Jolly Miner and Jingle Pot in Nanaimo. See below for a few pictures of me with some of the friendly staff you will find at each establishment.

Rudy at the Wheatsheaf Me and the gang at the Cranberry Arms
Gary and I at the Jolly Miner Pub Rudy with the ladies from the Jingle Pot Pub

Fridays Featured Restaurant Sponsors

To date Operation Red Nose has had over 100 volunteers through our headquarters over the first 4 nights of the 2006 holiday campaign. To keep our volunteers happy and alert they are supplied with snacks and non-alcoholic beverages. At an average of about 27 volunteers per night, that's a lot of mouths to feed for a non-profit on a tight budget. This is why I am eternally grateful to our many restaurant sponsors for their donations of food for Red Nose service nights, and gift certificates for our volunteer appreciation dinner that will take place in January. On Friday afternoon I was able to get around to a few of those locations (Bocca, Acme, and Husky House Restaurant and adjacent Service Station) to express my gratitude in person. Here I am with some of the lovely smiling faces there to greet me (and you).
Thumbs up to Bocca for supporting Red Nose and making fantastic Coffee!Red nosing around with the crew at Acme (left of Rudy) and PacificSport Communications Coordinator, Allison Parsley (right).

Here I am outside the Husky House Restaurant where the food takes just like home.
Here I am (again) with PacificSport Program Coordinator Feron Walker and two Husky Gas service attendants ready to pump some gas.

Legion 256 Supports Red Nose Designated Driving Service

Special thanks to the efforts of the Royal Canadian Legion Branch 256. They spend countless hours fundraising year round to help out deserving local Non-Profit Organizations. This year Operation Red Nose is proud to be among those chosen for a donation.
Here I am with Program Coordinator Feron Walker, accepting a cheque from Jim Blackburn, a representative of Legion 256.

Bakes Jarvie Insurance Donates to Red Nose

Bakes Jarvie of the North Island Autoplan Brokers Association knows first hand the value of planning ahead and using a designated driver. They see the unfortunate results of not planning a safe way home all too often. It is for this reason that both Bakes Jarvie and the North Island Autoplan Brokers are such avid supporters of the Operation Red Nose program.
Here I am pictured with Operation Red Nose Program Coordinator Feron Walker (left) accepting a $750 cheque from Bakes Jarvie Insurance Branch Manager Joanne Freelund (second from left) and Insurance Representative Melanie Crosson (right).

Weekend Results Summary

After some much needed sleep the numbers have been tallied and the results are in. 51 Operation Red Nose volunteers kept 241 people and 1686km of road safe this weekend by responding to 85 calls for designated driving services. Thanks for making responsible choices Nanaimo!

Special Thanks

Post-Parade we went up to the Island Freightliner Truck Sales Show and Glow to get a closer look at all the lights. The decorations on our little PacificSport Kia looked very unimpressive next to those trucks! Island Freightliner, Sales Coordinator, Karen Pierce was on hand with her family to make a donation to the Red Nose cause. On behalf of all of us at Operation Red Nose, I'd like to say a special Thank You to Island Freightliner for their generosity. Here I am with Karen and her daughters in front of the Island Freightliner truck.

Saturday Night Pub Sponsor Tour

Saturday December 2nd was our busiest night yet. Special Thanks to the 8 Malaspina Tourism and Recreation Association students for coming to help drive people home safely.
Early in the night I was able to get out to visit some of our Pub Sponsors Harewood Arms Pub, Branch 10 Legion Pub, 70 Below, The Globe and Old City Station Pub to remind patrons that Red Nose Volunteers were ready and waiting to take their calls for a safe ride home.
The nights results were positive with 22 Red Nose volunteers driving 46 rides (150 passengers), a total of 954km to get partygoers home safely.

Look at all the Pretty Lights

It's Monday morning and I'm on cloud nine. Operation Red Nose had a fantastic weekend and its all thanks to you Nanaimo!
On Friday night 29 Red Nose volunteers attended to 39 calls (91 passengers), driving a total of 732km to get partygoers home safely. Thanks to Coast Realty of Nanaimo for Sponsoring the night and supplying 17 of those much needed volunteers.

Friday was also the night for the Nanaimo Lions Club Christmas Parade. I was happy to see that even the chilly temperatures and 2 foot high snow banks couldn't keep loyal Nanaimoites away from festive activity. Despite the cold I walked a route full of spirited onlookers with PacificSport XploreSportZ Coordinator Catharine Edwards, Communications Coordinator Allison Parsley and local Canoe/Kayak athlete Nicole Haywood. With over 25 floats lit up, the Parade was absolutely beautiful and a great way to get us all in the holiday spirit.

Happy December Nanaimo

Happy December Nanaimo,

So how about that weather eh?
Mother Nature’s icy blast of winter last Saturday forced us to cancel the first night of service for Operation Red Nose. We haven't seen this much snow since our very first year of service back in 1996. Fortunately the blizzard also kept most drivers, impaired and otherwise off Nanaimo’s streets.
On a more positive note, with the freeze-out behind us we'll be back on again tonight and tomorrow, December 1st and 2nd.

Sunday afternoon (November 25th) I managed to get out to visit my good friend C-Dog, esteemed Mascot for the Nanaimo Clippers Hockey Team. We had a fantastic time greeting fans and shooting some pucks at intermission. It was an eventful game ending in a 5-5 tie against Penticton. If you missed it I've posted a few pictures for you to see.

Tonight I'll be out walking the Parade route for the Lions Club Christmas Parade in Downtown Nanaimo. Some of my friends at PacificSport including local Athlete Nicole Haywood will be there with me. I'll be posting some pictures tomorrow. Hope to see you all there!