While the Calgary Stampeders season may be postponed, McMahon Stadium will still be seeing an audience this weekend as it shines its lights on two drive-in movie nights.
The event is a joint effort from the rotary clubs of Calgary Chinook and Calgary Centennial, who hope to bring some nostalgic joy to Calgarians amid the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.
“We wanted to do something fun for Calgary and do it in a way that brings something different, something that hasn’t been done in a while,” president of the Rotary Club of Calgary Chinook Rob Wolfson said in an interview with Global News Radio 770 CHQR.
“This pandemic has given us the opportunity to come up with this drive-in concept.
“We thought there was no better place than McMahon Stadium. What an iconic place to do this type of event.”
The event also aims to raise money for two special charities. Wolfson said residents are encouraged to bring a cash donation to the movie night to help support the I can For Kids school nutrition program and Variety the Children’s Charity go baby go program.
“It’s so hard fundraising because, obviously, the economic situation in our city is not great, so it’s a double-pronged whammy for us,” Wolfson said. “But, we wanted to get out there and we want to be safe by making sure the volunteers and the people that we’re supporting are safe, but also finding new and inventive ways to do fundraising.”
Volunteers will be walking around the event with donation boxes should residents want to support the chosen charities.
Wolfson noted the event will follow all public health regulations.
“There is limited capacity,” he said. “We’ll be spacing the cars all two-metres-apart and we want to encourage as much cashless transactions as possible.”
Food trucks will also be on-site, however, Wolfson said residents are encouraged to pre-purchase their movie snacks online alongside their tickets, which must be purchased prior to the event.
Spaces are limited to 180 cars per movie.
As for the movie choices, Wolfson noted the event will see some classic flicks on the silver screen, including Legally Blonde on July 24 and the original Rocky on July 25.
Movies are set to begin at 9:30 p.m. The lot will open for cars one hour prior to the screening.