Performers from the Weyburn area will be part of the cast of Saskatchewan talent who will be performing on the TeleMiracle fundraiser broadcast this weekend.
Local talent includes dancer Autumn Alexander, singer Alfredo Aguiar, singer Breanna Bjarnason, singer Karissa Hoffart, singer Maraya Parisien and singer Onello Bahingawan. In addition, Brad and Ashley Brown of Sedley are part of the Countdown Show which precedes TeleMiracle, and will be streamed live online and the TeleMiracle YouTube channel.
This is a return appearance for a number of these performers, including Alexander who is dancing for the third time, her second appearance as a soloist. She previously appeared in 2017 and 2019.
She held a fundraiser selling her art online, and as of Monday she had raised about $2,000, which will be matched by Nutrien to make it a $4,000 donation.
As with most other performers, she taped a video of her dance performance and it is set to be shown around 1 p.m. on Sunday, Feb. 28.
“I’m pretty excited to see what the end result of our recording session looks like. It was quite different this year, but it will be cool to see how they mix in all the performances together in the end,” said Alexander.
Meantime, the Minister Responsible for the Provincial Capital Commission, Don McMorris, and Kinsmen, Kinettes and Kin Clubs of Saskatchewan announced that this is TeleMiracle Week in Saskatchewan, culminating this Saturday, Feb. 27 when the 45th edition of the annual telethon kicks off.
“TeleMiracle is a distinctly Saskatchewan event, reflecting the kindness and generosity of our province's people,” McMorris said. “With a population of nearly 1.2 million people, we can all be proud that more than $140 million has been raised since 1977. I urge everyone to support this extraordinary fundraiser by tuning into the telethon and encouraging your family, friends and neighbours to 'ring those phones' with donations to TeleMiracle 45, helping people right here in our province.”
TeleMiracle is organized annually by the Kinsmen, Kinettes and Kin Clubs of Saskatchewan with the proceeds going to the Kinsmen Foundation, which provides specialized mobility and medical equipment to people and organizations throughout the province, as well as travel assistance for residents in need of medical treatment outside their community. Last year's telethon raised $5,523,472.
“Saskatchewan people have given generously to TeleMiracle for the past 44 years and this year, we need their support more than ever,” TeleMiracle 45 Chair Brian Angstadt said. “Thanks to our donors, TeleMiracle will continue to touch the lives of people in every corner of the province. We are grateful for the honour of having TeleMiracle Week declared in Saskatchewan, which helps raise awareness in advance of this important telethon.”
TeleMiracle 45 will take place at Prairieland Park in Saskatoon without an in-studio audience. The hosts will be on stage live but, for safety reasons, the majority of the musical entertainment and donor presentations will be pre-taped or linked live from other locations.
The pre-show, Countdown to TeleMiracle, will be live-streamed on www.telemiracle.com beginning at 6:15 p.m. Saturday night. At 9 p.m. the 20-hour television broadcast gets underway on Saskatchewan's CTV stations. The telethon will continue to air around the clock until 5 p.m. on Sunday, Feb. 28.
