A mild winter does not take away from the fact the water will still be frigid when supporters "Take the Plunge" at Friday Harbour for Royal Victoria Regional Health Centre (RVH).
The fundraiser on Saturday, March 9 is for the Keep Life Wild campaign to support the expansion of the Barrie hospital and the creation of a new satellite health centre in Innisfil.
"At Friday Harbour, we are always looking for opportunities to give back to the local community," said Adam Bussell, Friday Harbour's Director of Marketing.
He says the creation of a health centre in Innisfil is near and dear to everyone.
A number of teams have signed up to take the plunge including a Team Friday Harbour and a Team RVH.
RVH announced in October 2021 it had chosen an 83-arcre property at the southwest corner of Yonge Street and Innisfil Beach Road for a new hospital that will come to be over a 20-year period.
The first phase of what's being called the South Campus will be a health facility focusing on outpatient care, including an urgent care centre.
Within 20 years, the property will be transformed into a full-fledged hospital with a 24/7 emergency department that will see about 350,000 patients each year.
About 10 per cent of the patients that use RVH are from Innisfil, so Saturday's fundraiser is critical not just from a standpoint of a new health facility but growing the current North Campus in Barrie.
The Keep Wild Campaign has a $100 million goal to expand RVH, which would double in size and include a new nine-storey in-patient tower with 240 beds, and an expansion to services such as cancer care, urgent care and the surgical suites.
Bussell says "Take the Plunge " raised $14,000 last year and they hope to surpass that milestone on Saturday.
There is no doubt, according to Bussell, that the expansion of health services in Barrie and in Innisfil will benefit everyone including those who are part of the Friday Harbour community.
"We really think of Friday Harbour as Canada's luxury lifestyle resort community, but also an all-seasons destination. We have really been working hard over the last while to create opportunities for the public to come out and visit Friday Harbour."
Bussell says Saturday's event is about giving back to the community, having fun and creating a good vibe.
Event Details
- Where: Friday Harbour Resort
- When: Saturday, March 9, starting at 11:00 a.m.
- Registration is open to the public.
- Tickets are on sale now
Images courtesy Friday Harbour
