One again, Surrey firefighters are raising money to ignite the dreams of Surrey students.
Members of the Surrey Fire Fighters Charitable Society (SFFCS) will host their annual fundraiser “Ignite A Dream” Sept. 28 at KPU’s Cloverdale campus.
Ignite A Dream is the annual charity event held by SFFCS that raises money to “provide educational opportunities for youth in Surrey who have shown great resiliency in overcoming adversity.” SFFCS awards high school grads pursuing a post-secondary education at KPU.
“Many students have told us that without this bursary, they wouldn’t have continued their education and would have gone down a different path,” Dylan Van Rooyen, SFFCS vice-president, said in a press release. “But to hear that we have altered that and given them the opportunity to excel in a field that they’re interested in is special to us as firefighters.”
Ignite A Dream is both a fundraising campaign and a fundraising night, with the main event being a cocktail social set for the end of September at KPU Cloverdale.
For the price of admission, the evening offers event-goers an all-you-can eat and an all-you-can drink gala. Tickets are $60 each or 10 for $500.
The gala will have both wine and craft beer along with a silent auction. Food will be provided by TAP Restaurant, The Boathouse, and Chez Christophe.
“Winning this award reinvigorated my passion for creative writing and helped me begin establishing myself as an Indigenous writer,” Samantha Krilow, a past recipient, said in the release. “It inspired me to take more risks and leaps of faith during my educational journey, knowing I had the resiliency to move forward and persevere no matter what life throws at me.”
Lead sponsors for the event this year are: the Gary and Gail Grelish Foundation, Scotiabank, Save-On-Foods, the Surrey Now-Leader, and KIS Consulting.
Last year the the Gary and Gail Grelish Foundation ran a donation-matching campaign and pledged up to $30,000. Jen Temple, whose family runs the Gary and Gail Grelish Foundation, told the Cloverdale Reporter the foundation will again match donations.
"Our Family foundation will be doing the same again this year with a $30,000 matching grant," Temple said. "Now we just need others to help us achieve this goal,:"
She said she is “very proud” of the work the SFFCS does to help students facing adversity.
“We believe kids deserve a chance at a future education,” said Temple. “So this charity helps give kids in need that chance.”
Temple said her foundation was drawn to support the firefighters’ charity because Ignite A Dream aligns with one of the foundation’s pillars: education.
“As a family, we have been very blessed and it is our honour to be able to give back especially here in Cloverdale,” explained Temple. “Our foundation focuses on Asperger’s, dyslexia, education, trauma, health and wellness, and food security, as each of these pillars touches our family’s heart.”
According to surreyfirefighters.com, Ignite A Dream “is designed to help remove barriers and ignite the dreams of children in Surrey by providing educational opportunities that would not exist without our support.”
To date, the SFFCS has raised more than $250,000 through Ignite A Dream.
The gala will be held Sept. 28 beginning at 6:30 p.m. at KPU’s Tech Campus in Cloverdale, 5500 180th Street.
For more info, or to buy tickets, visit surreyfirefighters.com/ignite.
