Shortage of volunteers puts Operation Red Nose at risk

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This article was published 22/11/2023 (720 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

This year’s free designated driver program Operation Red Nose Brandon is at risk because of a lack of volunteer drivers, says the organization’s Frank McGwire.

“We are perilously close to just cancelling it because we don’t have enough volunteer drivers,” McGwire said. “So, if we don’t get numbers up, the service will be discontinued in Brandon. It’s as simple as that.”

During the holiday season, Operation Red Nose (ORN) offers people who have been drinking or using recreational drugs a safe ride home — and in their own car.

When someone calls 204-728-NOSE (6673) for a ride, a team of three volunteers responds. Two go with the vehicle’s owner who doesn’t feel fit to drive, and the other follows in their own vehicle. There is no set amount for a donation, it’s up to the vehicle owner to decide.

It was hoped that this weekend would be the launch of ORN in Brandon, but according to McGwire, they’re having trouble finding enough people just to get if off the ground.

“If we had one team of three, we could possibly run it this weekend, but not enough people are signing up. That’s the challenge we had last year and that seems to be the challenge out of the gate again this year,” said McGwire, who is the organization’s media relations director.

The plan was to run the program this Friday and Saturday, four weekends in December, and New Year’s Eve, with calls accepted between 9 p.m. and 1 a.m. on operation nights.

Ideally, McGwire added, the goal is to have five or six teams of three per night.

“This would be great for office, service group or sports teams or things like that who are looking for ways to raise funds, and don’t forget, this all runs on charitable donations.

“So, at the end of the night — or at the end of the weekend — whoever runs it, they would be the beneficiary of the funds. So, if your son or daughter’s hockey team is looking for a fundraiser, this is a really good opportunity,” McGwire said.

Brandon’s Lisa Lynn Chamaschuk said she has volunteered “at least half a dozen times” and loved doing it, and is now looking for friends to join her.

“I’ve always driven people who are in a really good mood,” Chamaschuk said. “Once in a while you get someone who is nervous about a stranger driving, and then people have apologized for the condition of their car, but it’s fun to be a taxi driver. And most times, people are generous when you drop them off.”

Any means that people use to get home safely after they’ve been out enjoying the night and having a few drinks is recommended by police, says Brandon Police Service public information officer Sgt. Kirby Sararas.

“We don’t want people driving under the influence of anything. So, if you are going to be out indulging this holiday season, Operation Red Nose is just one of many ways that you can get home safely,” Sararas said.

ORN was created by Manitoba Public Insurance in 1995, and in 2004, brought in Safety Services Manitoba as a co-ordinator to connect with communities and help them plan and roll out local campaigns.

Ron Janzen, president and CEO of Safety Services Manitoba, said that provincewide, they usually have about 3,500 volunteers in participating communities, with about 4,500 rides over the holiday season.

Last year in 2022, he said he volunteered to drive in Winnipeg. “I just signed up as a single individual. So, they matched me up with two other young people who were maybe a third my age, but we had fun the whole night long. It was a good experience,” Janzen said as he laughed at the memory.

Janzen has heard that Brandon is having a hard time recruiting volunteers and said the lasting effects of the COVID-19 pandemic may be one of the reasons why.

“People who have done it for a lot of years kind of took the pandemic as the opportunity to say, ‘I think I’ve done my part.’

“And that’s fair, you know — they have done it for a lot of years. So we’re looking for a new generation to step up and step in, and that’s certainly the case in Brandon, so we encourage people to sign up,” Janzen said.

To become a volunteer, application forms can be picked up at CAA Brandon, 305 18th St. North, from Murray Chevrolet Cadillac, 1500 Richmond Ave., or from Western Nations Gas Bar, 1725 18th St. North.

Applicants are also asked to complete a criminal record check form and drop it, along with two pieces of photocopied identification — one that’s government issued with your picture — at Brandon Police Service, 1020 Victoria Ave.

The ORN headquarters is at the CAA offices on 18th Street North, said McGwire, and that’s where the drivers will gather to wait for their calls.

“We have incentives for the drivers while they wait in between calls. Thanks to our sponsors we are providing food and drinks courtesy of Tim Hortons, Pepsi Beverages, Old Dutch, and pizza from Marino’s, Domino’s, and Pizza Hut,” McGwire said.

“And our phone number is hooked up even though the service doesn’t start until Friday night, but we can now take calls from volunteers or remind people where they can pick up the volunteer applications.”

For more information on Operation Red Nose, visit https://bitly.ws/32Xpz

» mmcdougall@brandonsun.com

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