THUNDER BAY – When Linda Buchan and a group of friends started the Hope Classic in 1997 with a goal of raising $5,000 for breast cancer care, they couldn’t have known what they were starting. When that initial event exceeded their goal nearly eight times over, with a haul of $39,000, it was a sign of things to come.
Twenty-four years later, the women’s curling bonspiel has raised nearly $3.5 million. The money goes to support the Northern Cancer Fund at the Thunder Bay Regional Health Sciences Centre, funding critical equipment and care.
This year’s event, held Friday through Sunday at the Fort William Curling Club, contributed just over $117,000 to that total, thanks to the efforts of about 200 participants and many volunteers. 45 teams of four to seven women each competed over the weekend.
But Hope Classic co-founder and chair Sue Childs says the focus isn’t on winning or losing. Many of the women have been returning for years, and Childs says the sense of community and fun – which find ample outlet in social events on Friday and Saturday nights – are at least as important.
“I sat here on Friday night, and I just watched that door,” she says. “It was like, when the women walked through, they forgot everything else. It’s not about the curling – it’s more about the friendship and the camaraderie.”
Over 100 sponsors donate money, food, and other services to support the event. That includes vans lent to ferry curlers home at the end of the night. Most of the money raised comes through pledges, though entrants also pay a fee to enter.
Childs expects registration to fill up quickly for next year, which will mark the event’s 25th anniversary. It will also be taking place in the run-up to the Scotties Tournament of Hearts, the annual Canadian women’s curling championship, which will be held at the Fort William Gardens from Feb. 20-28.
