Buck Lake Boatilla raises $26,835 for Easter Seals Camp Merrywood

Bruce Archibald | Jul 16, 2015

The Buck Lake community has passed the buck again - but not in the way one might think. The idiom “pass the buck” means to give responsibility to someone else or to evade responsibility. If you pass the buck you shift responsibility for something to someone else in order to take pressure off yourself. Synonyms for this phrase include cop out, duck, get rid of, and shirk. Lastly the word “buck” is also slang for a dollar.

Where’s this going, you ask? Well, on July 4, the Buck Lake Community demonstrated anything but a willingness to cop out or shirk its responsibilities, by sending children with physical disabilities to Easter Seals Camp Merrywood. In doing so, the Buck Lake Community gave new meaning to “passing the buck”.

For 11 consecutive years, Buck Lakers have come together to raise money for Easter Seals. “We are guilty of passing the buck,” noted Liz Graham-Trudel, event treasurer. “100% of all the bucks we raise go to sending kids and youth to camp Merrywood. As of last year, our community has raised over $135,000 and sent 64 kids to camp.”

“It was a great day for our six attending Easter Seals kids and their families,” noted Grayden McClurg, organizer and Buck Lake resident. “We set a record this year with 49 watercraft in the Boatilla and the tour of the lake provided an opportunity for our special guests to see and experience our beautiful surroundings. Our theme for this year was 'Buck Lake Boats On' and it signified our continuing support to Camp Merrywood.”

“Coming together as a community by working towards a common cause is fundamental to the Boatilla. We need an opportunity to meet our neighbours and celebrate as a community. It makes us closer and stronger and our community BBQ at the end of the Boatilla does just that,” observed longtime resident Duncan Sinclair.

The “buck passing” was completed at the end of the barbeque with a cheque presentation for $23,700 to Easter Seals representatives Krista LeClair and Jessica Kostuck, which will allow will allow the community to send 10 children to Camp Merrywood.

After all the donations were in, the final tally was an astounding $26,835!

The Buck Lake Steering Committee would like to thank our local and extended Buck Lake families for their continued and generous support to the Boatilla. Your efforts make it possible for physically challenged youth and kids to enjoy outdoor activities which we experience every day on Buck Lake. Remember that “it’s all about the kids.”