The COVID-19 pandemic has caused a lot of upset and tumult, but Saturday, it will turn the rooftop of the Coquitlam Centre mall into a “treasure island” for a special group of young pirates to plunder.
When physical distancing requirements to stem the transmission of COVID-19 forced Variety - the Children’s Charity to ground its annual Boat for Hope event in Vancouver False Creek last June, they weren’t about to scuttle it outright. Instead, they’re bringing it ashore, to the expansive parking lot on top of Walmart, where about 400 young pirates facing health challenges, and their families, will be able to visit five decorated “treasure stations” to collect booty like lunch kits, sunglasses and mugs from the safety of their vehicles.
Organizer Rick Cassels said the event, that normally piles the kids, their siblings and caregivers aboard about 25 yachts for a cruise from the Royal Vancouver Yacht Club to the “pirates’ cove” of False Creek, is such a seasonal highlight for everyone involved it couldn’t be sunk after 21 years.
“The kids talk about Boat for Hope every year,” he said. “These kids are really challenged with their time and they say it’s the best day of their lives.”
As the realization set in that the pandemic would drag on through the summer, Cassels and his committee of volunteers endeavoured to conjure a new way to keep it afloat. A connection with the management team at Coquitlam Centre helped keep the creative juices flowing, and a plan was formulated that would conform to public health guidelines for gatherings of people as well as physical distancing requirements.
The yachts would become cars and the mall's rooftop parking lot offered a secure location where numbers of vistors could be controlled and family vehicles loaded with the young pirates could navigate islands safely.
Cassels said individual and corporate sponsors were quick to embrace the dry-land direction.
Local organizations like Coquitlam Search and Rescue, Coquitlam RCMP and the city’s fire department are also helping out, managing traffic flow and bringing life to the treasure stations by decorating their boats set upon trailers. Some will even be armed with water blasters so they can continue one of the most beloved aspects of the annual ritual, the mass water fight that seems to get everyone but the kids soaking wet every year.
“We’ll try to recreate the event as best we can,” Cassels said.
Most importantly, Boat for Hope is also a fundraiser to support programs Variety runs to help kids with special healthcare needs. In addition to sponsorships, money will come from a live online auction, a raffle for an inflatable boat prize package that also includes a motor and a trailer, as well as individual donations.
Cassels said he’s confident the extra effort to keep Boat for Hope on course, even on land, will be worth it.
“We weren’t going to let the virus cancel this event for these kids,” he said. “All we have to do is see the faces on these kids on that day and that’s the reason we do it.”
Boat for Hope runs from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. It’s a private event, but to find out more, including how to help, go to www.boatforhope.ca.
