Operation Red Nose (ORN) is looking for more volunteers to help bolster its efforts to make sure party-goes get a safe ride home this holiday season.
The organization, which has operated in the Tri-Cities every Christmas since 2007, currently has about 90 people who have filled out forms and had a criminal record check done.
But Chris Wilson, one of the ORN organizers, said he would ideally like to have 300 volunteers as the program ramps up over the course of the next few weeks.
“The more volunteers we have, the more rides we can give and the less time people will have to wait,” he told The Tri-City News.
Volunteers will begin taking to the road this weekend (tonight and Saturday) between 9 p.m. and 3 a.m. The service will continue to be offered on Fridays and Saturdays between now and Christmas, followed by a New Years Eve service on Dec. 31.
While the program has grown in popularity in Coquitlam, Port Coquitlam and Port Moody, in recent years it has expanded into New Westminster and Burnaby. Numbers in the new communities continue to grow, Wilson said, and the organization has been working to get more people interested in using the service. “There are still people that don’t understand how it works or they haven’t heard about it before… We really want to try and get the word out.”
People who have had too much to drink this holiday season are encouraged to call the Operation Red Nose number (778-866-6673) and have themselves and their cars driven home by volunteers.
The donated fares collected go to KidSport Tri-Cities, an organization that helps less fortunate kids access youth sports and equipment.
• Volunteers who are interested in helping Operation Red Nose this year can go to operationrednosetricities.com or email [email protected].
@gmckennaTC
