Although they have one less hour to work with than normal, spirits are high for the 34th United Way Telethon.
One of Canada's most successful telethons - having been the first in the country to reach its goal in 32 of the 33 years it has been in existence - this year's event is scheduled to kick off Friday morning at the Estevan Legion Hall at 8 o'clock and wrap Saturday at 5 p.m., one hour earlier than usual.
Estevan United Way chairman James Trobert said the goal for this year is $300,000, and with the incredible support Estevan and area individuals and businesses have shown them in past years, he is hopeful they will hit the mark.
"I am confident again that the community will get behind us and give us the support that we are looking for to fund our 20 member agencies that we are raising the money for," said Trobert.
"We are going to be shutting down at 5 on Saturday so we hope everyone gets their donation in sooner that later."
Other than the slight change in time, Trobert said everything will run as usual. A number of local schools, individuals, groups and bands are providing the entertainment throughout the course of the event. Popular local band, the Daae Family will close out the telethon, performing from 3 to 5.
"We are looking forward to them coming on board," Trobert said of the Daae Family. "We have a variety of other musical acts, dance acts and stand-up comedians."
Along with the support of the community, Trobert noted they are also backed by a strong base of volunteers who have been working since the 2009 telethon ended to get ready for this year's event.
"We are in the final throes of getting the telethon ready to go on air," he said. "All of our committees have been working really hard to get the entertainment lined up and get the facilities ready to go and prepare all the behind the scenes stuff.
"We, as a board, and the volunteers who come out to help us always have a good time and a lot of fun doing this. We are looking forward to meeting the challenge again this year."
Trobert said the United Way board consists of roughly 25 people and they expect another 30 to 50 people will come out and help during the telethon. Anyone who is interested in getting involved with the event may do so by contacting Trobert or by showing up Thursday at the Legion Hall to assist with setting the event up.
