The CN Centre parking lot was covered in a sea of colourful dust and white t-shirts for the Prince George Hospice Palliative Care Society’s fifth annual Hospice Colour Walk this Sunday.
The annual event took place from 10 a.m. to noon as a fundraiser to support construction of an accessible outdoor space for guests and families at Rotary Hospice House.
“We're here to really celebrate life and colour to maybe remember those have passed. But to really come out as a community, have some fun, share memories, and raise money for hospice,” said executive director Donna Flood.
“The money is dedicated to this space, which right now is kind of sad. We just want to make it so people can be out with their families in a really beautiful outdoor settings, maybe barbecue something up, sit and have a conversation and just have a nice peaceful space.”
Participants were not only tasked with running through clouds of colourful powders, but the event also included a personal challenge to walk 100k throughout the month of May and share updates through social media.
“One of my favorite parts about this has been the stories that people tell,” said Flood. “People are out there doing the work and sharing their stories, participating and going to our parks and getting out and getting active, which is pretty awesome.”
Flood said the event started pre-COVID with just the colour walk and then evolved to include the 100k challenge.
“We decided we still wanted to do something the community needed to do something. So we said, let's just get out walk 100k In the month of may get out be active, be safe, be with your people and share your memories.”
She said the event helps ensure that hospice is here for the future of Prince George.
As well as the colour walk, the event saw a welcoming by the UHNBC Traditional drummers, balloon animals, and free rides from the Central BC Railway and Forestry Museum’s mini-train.
