When it comes to the Estevan Humane Society’s events, they always are a blast. Fun, entertaining and family-oriented these community activities guarantee a great time.
And even though the third annual Judy Martin Memorial Duck Derby didn’t go as planned on Sunday, the day still turned out great and the lucky winner, Bruce Frank, went home with $4,315. The humane society was left with the other half of the proceeds, which will help them to keep operating the no-kill shelter.
The little yellow rubber ducks, once in the water, appeared to be not very co-operative and refused to go towards the finish line.
The Rafferty Dam opened gates and let water out three days prior to the event, which meant that the Souris River should have been slowly flowing east. But the slight breeze messed up the plans. So the ducks went with the wind and started travelling the opposite direction.
“We had to jump in with the paddleboat and try to get them moving in the right direction, but we ended up giving up. There were six ducks that were away from the pack, and then it was just the furthest one, closest to the line, we chose as the winner,” explained Angela Prette, the president of the Estevan Humane Society.
The competition lasted for about an hour but probably would have taken the entire day if not for the rescue team on kayaks and a paddleboat chasing and shooshing little rubber athletes. Both Amanda and Travis Frank who were operating the kayaks ended up getting in the water while trying to navigate the ducks.
Nevertheless, the air at the dog park was filled with laughs as the crowd of about 100 people enjoyed a beautiful and sunny Sunday afternoon. There were hotdogs and hamburgers, ice-cream and even a bouncy castle on-site to make the lunch event complete.
The sales were down this year. Last time, the winner took home almost $8,000. Prette said that partly it is because of the economy, but they also were out with the tickets less this year mainly because of a lack of people in summer.
“We could use one more board member. And we could always use volunteers. We could have them come into the shelter and spend time with the animals, we could use them for these fundraiser events. They could help us sell the tickets. If we had volunteers to seat at the co-op and sell them for us, that would be great. We always need volunteers,” said Prette.
The Estevan Humane Society is one of a few no-kill shelters, which takes a lot of work and money to operate.
Their next fundraiser, the Whiskers and Wine Gala, is slated for February.
“It will be at the Exhibition Hall again, and we are going to have Hook and Nail again. And we are going to have Poor Nameless Boy there. And it will be catered again. And there will be a silent auction. That’s probably our biggest fundraiser of the year,” said Prette.
Poor Nameless Boy is the stage name for folk musician Joel Henderson, who is a former Estevan resident. Hook and Nail is also a local act.
The Duck Derby is usually the second biggest fundraiser, and even though they raised less money this time, the shelter is very grateful for the community support.
Prette also noted that their e-transfers were way up this time, which means that a lot of people started supporting them and participating in their fundraisers online.
“That works for us too, it’s an easy way to accept the money. That’s a benefit this year."
The humane society will have a little bit of a break with fundraisers over the fall months, however, there is always a lot of work to do at the shelter with a lot of animals that need to be taken care of.
“Cats are always bad. We never seem to have a break with cats,” said Prette. “And dogs, we are usually around anywhere from three to eight dogs, which is where we are right now too.”
If anyone is willing to help they can contact the Estevan Humane Society over the phone or through their Facebook page.
