Murray Wood: Who's hot... and who's not
Every Friday, Murray Wood takes a look at the week's news and decides who's hot... and who's not. This week's list inclu...
Clothes into one box, shoes into another, and toys into yet another – that’s just a bit of the sorting that was done in Regina on Saturday with the thousands of donations given for Syrian refugees.
The donations were being unpacked, sorted, and then packed again to be shipped off to the various agencies in Regina helping settle the refugees.
Mayor Michael Fougere was there for a bit, and he said he’s proud of the response by people in Regina, calling the outpouring of donations “incredible”.
“I’m not surprised to see this kind of generosity by Regina residents, and it just confirms once again that people are welcoming with open arms.”
A big force behind the push for donations was Niall O’Hanlon, owner of the The Fat Badger pub.
“It seemed like the right thing to do.
Though O’Hanlon is modest about it. “I’m just good at lifting boxes.”
He said he it was estimated people donated around $180,000 worth of things. He said he didn’t realize how big it was going to get.
“It was only when we were collecting it day-by-day we saw how fast it was growing. I thought I was going to lifting maybe two couches or something, when I put the thing on the internet, and it kind of turned into a full-time job for three weeks. It was just like, pickup and delivery of items.”
There are so many donations, the city said they don’t need anything more for now.
Five refugee families are expected in Regina before Christmas, according to Fougere.
