After being put on hold for two years, Operation Red Nose is back in business, helping to get Lethbridge residents and their cars home safe.
Claude Bilodeau with Black Velvet Distilling Company is volunteering one night of all five weeks.
“We are happy to be here for the University of Lethbridge Pronghorns, but it’s also important to us to show the community that we are strong advocates of responsible drinking and a big part of that is helping Operation Red Nose,” said Bilodeau.
He said volunteering for the program was an easy decision and knows it’s making a difference.
“Any time you keep an impaired driver off the road, it’s a good thing.”
Larry Steinke has been volunteering with the program since its inception in 1994. He is also a Pronghorns coach and said the drive home service is a great opportunity for student athletes to get involved with the community.
“I think that there’s a lot of benefits to the program itself, but I think that there is more importantly the contribution to the community that the athletes and coaches and all the other volunteers to the program make and I think that’s sort of been a mainstay over the years,” said Steinke.
Operation Red Nose coordinator Kathy Hong said getting back into the swing of things following the pandemic has been a challenge and they need the support of the community, not just to use the service but to also volunteer.
“Its been a bit of a struggle, I’m not going to lie. Our first couple of weekends have been good, but our last three nights we do need some more help,” added Hong.
“One of the positions — the designated driver position — you have to be at least 21 and although most of our volunteers are our student athletes, most of them are not 21.”
Many students also travel home for the holidays after exams, adding to the need for community volunteers for the final few days. You can go to the Pronghorns website to sign up.