Coldest Night of the Year at 70 per cent of fundraising goal in support of Wilmot Family Resource Centre

Walkers embark from the New Hamburg Community Centre Feb. 22 on two- or five-kilometre routes during the Wilmot Family Resources Centre’s Coldest Night of the Year fundraiser. Galen Simmons photo

Galen Simmons, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter

As of press time on Wednesday, Wilmot’s annual Coldest Night of the Year (CNOY) fundraiser has brought in roughly 70 per cent or almost $40,000 of the event’s $56,000 goal, all of which will go to support the Wilmot Family Resource Centre (WFRC) and the vulnerable community members the centre serves.

A total of 134 walkers across 27 teams supported by 30 volunteers turned out for the fundraiser walk in New Hamburg Feb. 22. Before the walkers set off on two- and five-kilometre routes, they gathered at the starting point – the New Hamburg Community Centre – for welcoming remarks from WFRC executive director Trisha Robinson.

“Poverty looks the same to a child, a family, an individual, or a senior in a rural community as it does in a large city like Kitchener, Waterloo or Cambridge,” Robinson said to those gathered. “Poverty looks like someone who suddenly loses a job or becomes sick with cancer or mental illness. Poverty looks like a child who just lost a parent to divorce or separation. Poverty looks like a teen not getting along with his parents and living out on the streets, or a senior citizen on a low, fixed income, or a graduate student struggling with a loan debt, or a single parent struggling to raise a family.

“In other words, poverty looks like you or me and any of us yesterday, today, or perhaps tomorrow could find circumstances beyond our control have changed our lives in the blink of an eye. Every day, families and individuals in our community are forced to make impossible choices between the basic necessities of life. … We can do better than this in our region, in our province and in our country, so look around at the face of poverty. It isn’t out there; it’s here in this room. I wear it and so do you. It affects us all. Tonight, we are walking together with all the other Coldest Night of the Year walkers across Canada to bring food, shelter and hope to the hurting people in each of our communities.”

After Robinson finished speaking, the walkers watched as students from Centre Stage Dance Studio performed a few routines and the cadets from 822 Tudor Squadron performed a cheer to encourage those participating in the fundraiser walk.

After the walk concluded, participants congregated next door at the New Hamburg Royal Canadian Legion for a light dinner and fellowship.

According to the CNOY website, the team that raised the most money for the WFRC was the 10-member Steinmann Strollers with a total of $6,065, followed by the four-member team, the Resource Centre Walkers, which brought in $4,160.

“We are very thankful for the tremendous support from our Coldest Night 2025 people who helped made this another successful and fun event,” Robinson said after the event. “Please know every step taken will help people in our community.”

Funds will continue to be raised for Wilmot’s CNOY 2025 online at cnoy.org/location/wilmot until March 31.