A thousand rubber duckies will be racing for charity on Sept. 4.
The Optimist Club of Red Deer is holding its second annual Red Deer Duck Race at Discovery Canyon on Monday. The floating toys will be marked with numbers and sent down the winding waterfall by River Bend Golf Course.
The person whose duck crosses the finish line first will win $5,000.
Proceeds from the race will go towards Optimist Club-supported youth programs, which have included the Red Deer Public School District’s Reading College and Fairview Elementary School, as well as various sports and wellness efforts.
The local Optimist Club has been around since 1960, supporting causes catering to children and teenagers under age 18, with every dollar contributed staying to help youths in this community, noted Les Trevor, spokesman for the Optimist Club of Red Deer.
Trevor said everyone is invited to see this year’s duck race, which will begin around 9:30 a.m.
The novel fundraiser was started in 2022 after the club’s previous Salute to Youth dinners couldn’t be held because of COVID-19 uncertainty.
Each rubber duckie can be “purchased” for $20 race through www.rafflebox.ca, in accordance with Alberta Lottery and Gaming rules. This includes having a photographer at the finish line — just in case it’s a photo-finish.
Although up to 1,000 ducks are available, only the ones “bought” by donors will go into the water, said Trevor.
Anyone interested in tickets can also Google Red Deer Optimist Duck Race 2023.