Bluey Day raises $120K for MRI body coil, exceeds goal

FORT ST. JOHN, B.C. — The Fort St. John Hospital Foundation’s annual Bluey Day event exceeded its fundraising goal this year, raising more than $120,000.

The event saw participants shaving their heads on Saturday, May 25th in Centennial Park, with donations going towards purchasing an MRI body coil.

Kelly Amboe, the Executive Director of the FSJ Hospital Foundation, says she’s excited to see her team’s $100,000 fundraising goal surpassed.

“It feels amazing, because the last few years, our Bluey Days did not meet our goal, and when we do the mathematical calculations, we kind of need 50 shavers to meet that goal,” Amboe said.

“We didn’t have 50 shavers, so it’s like, ‘how are we going to do this?’ We had some amazing fundraisers that helped us get to our goal.”

This was the first year the event was held in Centennial Park, and Amboe says bringing it there was the right decision.

“We got nothing but positive feedback. The weather was on our side, and so much of the community came out. It was very accessible for everyone — that was one of the challenges with other locations — and visible to everyone,” Amboe said.

“We ended up having a lot of people just come by and check it out, which was wonderful. That was our intent — we want the community to come out and help us celebrate this fundraiser and, you know, the joyful and the tearful moments of it.”

According to the fundraising website for Bluey Day, 30 participants had their heads shaved for the fundraiser, including Energeticcity’s own Ed Hitchins.

Donations are also still being accepted on the website until June 1st.