Several events are planned to raise funds for the Peter Skene Ogden Secondary School (PSO)'s 2025 Dry Grad this spring.
The events include an online auction being held from April 10 to 17, a bottle drive on April 26, a Pizza Day P.A.R.T.Y. (which stands for Prevent Alcohol and Risk Related Trauma in Youth) on May 5 that will involve 99.7 CFFM FM (the GOAT), a Jail and Bail on May 9 and a carwash set for May 10. All the proceeds from these events will go towards funding the 2025 PSO Dry Grad.
According to Jonathan Grieve, the president of the 2025 PSO Dry Grad committee, the online auction will involve several items offered by local businesses and private citizens in the community. The auction is set to be held on Facebook on the 2025 PSO Grad online auction page.
Some of the items available for bidding include a gift certificate for A+ Start to Finish Driving School, a pass for Beautiful Soul Yoga and Fitness and a tackle box and goodies from Donex Pharmacy & The Screamin' Reel.
The bottle drive will be held between 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. at the Lone Butte Fire Hall and in front of PSO. PSO already had held a bottle drive for the 2025 graduates on Jan. 4 where they raised around $3,094. There is also a pickup option.
"They can also text a phone number: which is 250-318-8486," Grieve said regarding how people can participate in the pickup.
As for the Pizza Day P.A.R.T.Y., Grieve said the event is new to him.
"The Pizza Day P.A.R.T.Y. is in conjunction with the GOAT radio station and it's another fundraiser. So it is where people can call in and you buy the term for it - basically, the token is a pizza. It's not a physical pizza, but you basically buy a pizza and the donated money goes to the PSO grad," Grieve explained.
P.A.R.T.Y. is an international health promotion program that was developed in the mid to late 1980s in Ontario which targets adolescents with a high chance of sustaining trauma related to the use of alcohol. The event is planned to occur on May 5, but it's yet to be determined what time it will begin.
The Jail and Bail will return on May 9, which is planned to take place in front of the 100 Mile Save-on-Foods, which last year saw people being mock arrested and having to raise $200 to be bailed out. This year, there are some planned changes to the event.
"Previously - they actually had a fake jail cell. The last couple years, they've used a bus. Three years, I believe, they've used a bus, but actually, at our last meeting, we talked about to see if we still have the mock jail set-up," Grieve said, adding that the mock jail is better than the bus set-up.
In addition, nominations will be going forward for people to be "arrested." Grieve said this process is still being finalized and will be released closer to the day of the event.
Finally, the carwash will be held at Integra Tire, which is being run by Amanda Blues, one of the owners' wives. The event will run from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. and will be by donation.
"The graduates just wash cars," Grieve said.
Lastly, Grieve is thanking the Williams Lake and District Credit Union, who have been selling Purdy's Chocolates for the PSO grads. While the credit union has sold out, there will be Purdy's chocolate available to purchase at the rest of the events that are planned.
Overall, Grieve says it's wonderful that the dry grad committee has been able to organize these events.
"Honestly, we've had a very good turnout and involvement from the parents this year, and a lot of good volunteering support as well from the grads," Grieve said. So far, they have raised a cumulative amount of $28,377.
The graduation ceremony will place at 6:30 p.m. on June 20 at the South Cariboo Rec Centre with dry grad taking place on Saturday, June 21.
