Area residents are well-known when it comes to supporting charitable causes, but this one might surprise you.
Although North Bay is dwarfed by other cities across Canada it punches well above its weight when it comes to fundraising. Our community is one of the top fundraisers for the Pet Valu Walk for Dog Guides
It’s an impressive achievement as approximately 150 cities and towns across Canada participate in the event which raises approximately $1.3 million for Dog Guides annually.
North Bay’s success can be attributed to dedicated leader Melanie Pigeau, who has a penchant for creative fundraising ideas.
A dog owner herself, she's been organizing the Walk for 13 years now, and attributes her success to old-fashioned hard work.
It started as a way to find dog[friendly events, which were rare back then.
"This was a dog-encouraged event, so in 2006 I signed up to be a walker. It was very small, maybe three dogs, and we just walked along the waterfront and back," she tells BayToday.
That first walk inspired her to look into ways to improve it and found out she had to become a Lion's Club member first, so she signed up, and by 2011 was the chief organizer.
The walk started to grow in popularity, getting bigger every year. In 2019. pre-pandemic, the walk had grown to 150 participants.
Last year, Pigeau caught COVID but still put on the event raising over $11,000.
"I keep changing things up, and people seem to enjoy that."
She always tries to have dog entertainment. "It can be a dog tricks show or an agility show. This year I have the local rehab facility coming to show people how to properly exercise their pets. We'll have a zone where dogs find treats in a pool of balls and try to catch treats on a string. I just try to make it entertaining so people are doing stuff with their pets while they are there."
Pigeau points out that there is a real demand for guide dogs in this area.
"When I first started you'd see a new guide dog about every seven years, now we're getting one to three per year in different categories."
Those include canine vision, hearing, autism assistance dogs as well as service guide dogs which help people in wheelchairs for instance. The more money she raises, the more people that need the service can get one. She calls the walk "vital."
It costs $35,000 to breed, train and match the dogs to owners.
"It takes about two years because they go through a lot of training," she explained.
This year’s Walk will be taking place in North Bay on Sunday, June 4. Registration is from noon till 1 p.m. and the actual walk is from 1-2. There will be a barbeque and raffles and draws and entertainment. The Walk is also offered virtually.
You can get all the information you need on the Pet Valu Walk For Dog Guides North Bay Facebook page.
