THUNDER BAY – A local group is calling on snowmobilers in the Thunder Bay region to assemble for a good time, and a good cause. The 7th annual Sled for Eternity event on Feb. 1 raises funds to support addiction supports throughout northwestern Ontario.
The event offers participants all-day riding on groomed trails, as well as lunch, dinner, and prizes - including a new snowmobile. Starting at the Kakabeka Legion, riders can choose between a family route about 180 kilometres long, or the “sled-head route,” at around 250 kilometres, stopping for lunch in the Shebandowan area and returning to Kakabeka for dinner.
Robby Ahuja is the northwestern Ontario director of Adult & Teen Challenge, an international organization that tackles addiction issues. He says the organization depends on the financial boost from Sled for Eternity to get them through the lean post-Christmas fundraising period.
The event raised an all-time high $75,000 last year with about 100 riders, and well over $300,000 since it started. Organizers hope to top that in 2020.
The funds support a growing network of services offered in the region by the Christian discipleship group. After starting with a four-bed facility, Adult & Teen Challenge now operates a 14-bed home in Thunder Bay for men struggling with addiction, and a 10-bed centre for women. That’s in addition to some regional offices – including a new one in Dryden – support groups, and school outreach programs.
Ahuja says the group’s services are needed more than ever in the region, and he can speak to their effectiveness first-hand.
“This program changed my life,” he says “I was addicted to crack cocaine, in and out of jail, and now today I’m married, I’m a taxpayer, I have four kids – my life’s completely transformed. And there’s thousands of stories like me. This program works, it changes lives.”
Participants can register on the group’s website for a donation of $100, which covers a trail pass, lunch and dinner, and a chance at prizes. Riders are also encouraged to raise additional donations through sponsors, which gives access to additional prizes as well.