(HALO Air Ambulance)

By David Opinko

HALO Air Ambulance raises $3.2-million in 2020, doubling 2019’s record

Mar 5, 2021 | 11:57 AM

LETHBRIDGE, AB – HALO Air Ambulance smashed their previous fundraising record.

Last May, the Southern Alberta-based non-profit announced, due to them not being able to hold in-person fundraising events due to COVID-19 restrictions, they were in jeopardy of losing money and having to scale back operations.

READ MORE: HALO Air Ambulance close to ceasing operations without funding

CEO Paul Carolan says the community came together in an amazing way, organizing significant fundraising events and making donations on their own.

For the “Free Fry Day” event, for example, over $350,000 in donations were made in a single day.

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READ MORE: Halo ’Fry Day’ tally now at $350,000, with decisions to be made

This has lead to the organization receiving approximately $3.2-million in 2020, around double what HALO raised in 2019.

At the time, 2019’s total was the group’s record.

“I’m never actually surprised by the people that believe in this program, so while I would say I’m not surprised they rallied to our cause, the board and the organization deeply deeply respect what people did and what they made happen for us. People really wanted to make sure the program stays around and they made that clear.”

Carolan says they are now able to provide full medevac services through to the fall of 2021 without needing to raise a single additional dollar.

“We’re in the best position we’ve ever been in at the beginning of the year.”

As much as it feels great for him to be in this spot right now, HALO has been diligent in ensuring they can stay in a prime position moving forward.

“We’ve launched some pretty good fundraisers to help diversify our fund development model in the meantime, so we should be better insulated in the future so we can weather unexpected crises like the pandemic.”

One such event is the newly-launched “HALO Cattle Er’ Cash Lottery” that started Thursday.

He says it was a natural fit to have an agriculture-themed lottery given their deep connection to rural and farm communities.

It comes with a unique grand prize.

“We have a presenting sponsor in Highline Angus, so they’re providing the bred cattle, so 20 bred heifers or $50,000 cash is the grand prize.”

Carolan told LNN that some people had found their website buttons while it was still a work in progress, so before the lottery had even launched, they were already 10 per cent sold out.

As of this publication, they have sold more than $84,000 in tickets.

You can enter the Cattle Er’ Cash Lottery here.