A fire may have brought one family’s home down, but the Amber Valley community is going to try and help them build back up.
On Oct. 14, the Amber Valley Community Association will be holding its first jam of the season, and it will also be a benefit dance.
Association secretary Virginia Donald said the proceeds of the event are going to the Mike and Darlene Zelman, who lost their home after a fire in July.
“We’ll have donations if possible, and everything will go to their fire fund,” Donald said. “They’ve been members and lived in the community all their life, and we are a community hall. And anybody around, or in the area, we always dedicate to the people that are in the area.”
She said they do not have any particular fundraising goals, as attendance depends on a variety of factors.
“If it’s a nice weekend, a lot of people come out,” she said. “If it’s not, then it’s going to depend on the weather, and if they’re in the fields. So we’re hoping to have a good crowd.”
Donald pointed out that the Zelmans have lived in the area for years. The association thought that connecting this fundraiser to the first jam of the season would be a perfect opportunity to raise money for their fire fund.
“It’s only appropriate that the community get together and do something,” she said. “They’re in the community, and that’s what community halls do.”
Athabasca Fire Department chief Travis Shalapay acknowledged the helpfulness of neighbours in the area soon after the fire. That that time, he said a nearby public works employee brought out a tanker, while another neighbour brought a track hoe that helped the firefighters get to hot spots that they could not reach otherwise.
“The neighbours were fantastic at pointing out the hazards to us,” he said in an interview after the fire.
So what can people expect if they come out to the jam?
“They can expect good dance music, if anybody likes to dance, or not only that, just to socialize,” Donald said, adding that it is country dance music.
She said people are also free to bring an instrument and sign up to play.
“Everybody brings their instruments, and you sign up at the door as you come in,” she said. “Everybody takes their turn ... Everybody that can play or sing, they just sign up and they put you on the list.”
Donald said people come from all over to participate in the jams.
“We have them coming from Morinville, Edmonton, Redwater, Lac La Biche,” she said. “They all come and just socialize and have a good time.
The association holds its jams the second Saturday of every month October through June.
The jam and benefit dance will be held Oct. 14 from 5-9 p.m. at the Amber Valley Community Hall. A concession is available, with hamburgers, hot dogs and fries.
“Coffee’s free all night,” Donald added.
