The Okanagan Rail Trail is moving ever closer to its goal of a cycling and hiking trail connecting Coldstream to Kelowna, thanks to Kal Tire.
Staff at the Vernon office are organizing the Kal Tire Community Garage Sale and Market, Saturday in the parking lot of the corporate office on Kalamalka Lake Road.
It’s a chance for members of the public to get rid of some of their unwanted items while supporting the Rail Trail.
“There are many Kal Tire team members in our Vernon office that support the development of the Okanagan Rail Trail initiative and we wanted to organize an event that provides the opportunity for Kal Tire team members, the Okanagan Rail Trail group and anyone else from the community to join forces in raising awareness and funds for the rail trail,” said Kevin McCarty, corporate social responsibility co-ordinator at Kal Tire.
“One reason we chose to organize the fundraiser in October is because all funds raised in this month for the rail trail will be matched by seven generous supporters up to a total of $500,000, meaning everyone’s donations at this event will go twice as far.”
The discontinued rail corridor between Coldstream and Kelowna has been secured for public use, and the process to convert rails to trails is now underway.
“The Okanagan Rail Trail has the potential of becoming a world class cycling and hiking destination,” said McCarty.
“It will provide a variety of social, environmental and economic benefits for the people of the Okanagan Valley and will draw tourists to the area, adding to our already thriving tourism economy.”
In addition to organizing the fundraiser for the rail trail, the Kal Tire Sustainability Team also wanted to create an event to celebrate National Waste Reduction Week.
“Each year we organize activities in our office to encourage more people to recycle and compost at work and at home and this year we wanted to go beyond our own four walls to engage the community in reducing what we send to the landfill,” said McCarty.
“A garage sale and market that promotes repurposing used goods and local production of food and crafts will help demonstrate how we can all work together to keep waste out of our local landfills.”
In addition to garage sale vendors, the event will feature a display by Spa Hills Compost, which coordinates Kal Tire’s composting program, demonstrating how easy it is for local businesses to compost.
As well, Kal Tire will have a tire recycling display to demonstrate how tires are recycled in Canada, ensuring they don’t end up in landfills.
The Kal Tire Community Garage Sale and Market takes place Saturday from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. in the parking lot at Kal Tire, 1540 Kalamalka Lake Rd. Stall rentals are $20 each, with only 40 stalls available. Vendors keep their proceeds, and all stall proceeds will go to the rail trail. If you don’t wish to rent a stall, you can donate your gently used goods to be sold by rail trail volunteers.
McCarty said the day will feature fun for all ages, including a bouncy castle for the kids, a barbecue, with food donated by Save-On Foods, beverages and live music.
“There will be plenty of vendors selling a wide variety of used goods as well as locally produced food, crafts and artisan products,” he said.
“We hope to see lots of people come down to the event to join together around the Okanagan Rail Trail, waste reduction and to just have a good time together with others from the community.
“We are also open to providing space for people that would like to raise funds for the Okanagan Rail Trail in other ways. If anyone has a creative, fun idea for raising funds and would like to try it out at this event, we would be glad to provide some space for them,” said McCarty.
For more information or to book your stall, email CSR@kaltire.com or call 250-558-3200, ext. 528.