Osoyoos Mayor Stu Wells signs a proclamation declaring February to be Heart Month in Osoyoos while volunteers who will be collecting funds for the Heart and Stroke Foundation look on. From left are Nancy Heather, Annette Star, Wells, Sher Dastoor and Verna Shannon. Photo by Richard McGuire.
Canvassers will be going door-to-door in Osoyoos throughout February raising awareness and collecting donations for Heart Month.
About 1,500 volunteers will be covering the Okanagan and Kootenay area, but more volunteers are still needed locally, said Joanne King, manager, Okanagan/Kootenays with the Heart and Stroke Foundation.
“Obviously we don’t have every street covered in Osoyoos,” said King. “We’ve got many covered, but people can still get involved by volunteering.”
King said the time commitment can be as little as two hours and volunteers will typically be asked to canvass their own street, but if that’s not possible, another street nearby can be chosen.
The Heart and Stroke Foundation is hoping to raise more than $270,000 in the Okanagan and Kootenay area this year, said King, who is based in Kelowna, but emphasizes that she serves other communities throughout the region.
In addition to canvassing for donations, canvassers will also hand out literature to raise awareness, she said.
Among this year’s messages will be that heart disease and strokes take the life of one Canadian every seven minutes, King said.
The organization is also trying to communicate that it’s not just older people who are affected.
“The myth is that it’s an older person who has a heart attack and that’s certainly not the case anymore,” said King, noting that people in their 40s, or even their 20s are affected.
“A lot of it is preventable, so it’s just getting the message out that it’s changing your lifestyle and all the things you should be doing like eating healthy and exercising.”
Among this year’s volunteers in Osoyoos is Sher Dastoor, who will be acting as a captain for the canvass for the first time after having volunteered as a canvasser for more than five years.
Dastoor said she first became involved volunteering for the Heart and Stroke Foundation because her father suffered from heart problems.
When she lived in Manitoba, she supported Heart Month as a donor, but after coming to Osoyoos seven years ago, she was asked to volunteer as a canvasser.
Often there is not a lot of interaction at the door, Dastoor said, and sometimes canvassers just drop off a package so that people can donate by mail. Sometimes though, the people she calls on have their own stories of heart disease in their families, which they say has motivated them to donate.
The amount that people donate varies greatly, with the more generous donations often exceeding $20, or higher in the case of some businesses, Dastoor said. However, every donation is welcome.
She recommends the experience of canvassing both because it’s a worthwhile cause and because she enjoys meeting people.
In many communities, businesses organize special events to raise funds from employees and customers, King said, although she wasn’t aware of any special events planned yet this year in Osoyoos.
Those wishing to volunteer can contact the area office at 250-860-6275.
