Anyone worried about this summer and the possible wildfires it may bring can breathe a sigh of relief.
Thanks to Miracle Theatre and this year's comedy A Comedy of Tenors, $180,000 was raised to provide the City of Prince George with new equipment to protect the city from forest fires.
Formally introduced during a ceremony at Fire Hall No. 1 on Monday, the structure protection equipment is a series of hoses and sprinklers designed to create a moisture dome around buildings that may be impacted by wildfires. It can help protect 50 homes in one deployment and can hold up to 2,500 gallons of water at a time.
Miracle Theatre stages one play a year, donating the proceeds to charitable causes. Ted Price, who founded Miracle Theatre with Anne Laughlin in 2015, said that it was a recent close encounter with a wildfire that inspired him to look for a way to support the city's efforts to stop fires from spreading.
“The fires had been so bad, summer after summer," he said. "Four or five months before we announced this particular project, we got evacuated from the outskirts of Banff. It made quite an impression on us. Then on our way back, McBride had a fire just on the outskirts. It was staring us right in the face and made a big impression."
While the city has been spared from wildfires, that may not always be the case, he said.
"We've been so lucky in Prince George. We haven't had to deal with anything, but our time's going to come, we feel that," he said. "So when we discovered that Prince George didn't have any wildfire equipment, we thought, 'well, maybe we can do something about that.' We thought this was particularly timely. So, we chose a play that we knew people would have a lot of fun with, and it was very well attended, very well received, and we got lots of support. Now, the structure protection unit is here, ready to go.”
Before it arrived in Prince George, the equipment was lent to Barkerville Historic Town and Park to protect it from encroaching fires last summer.
The trailer holding the equipment itself was named “Miracle” to thank and honour the effort that brought the equipment to Prince George.
“I'm grateful and very much moved," said Mayor SImon Yu. “Miracles sometimes do come true. From just an idea not only did we get this structural fire unit for the fire hall, but also the opportunity to educate the general public in terms of wildfire, in terms of equipment and the personnel needed to fight a fire. Because of that, we as a city council, are going to also try to consider getting another one, because of the original initiative. It is a win-win-win situation for the community. I'm just grateful for all that Ted and Anne have done for our community, year in and year out, for all their donations, all their productions. We're looking forward to next year's miracle effort.”
In 2025, Miracle Theatre intends to focus on seniors, with funds raised going to the Prince George Seniors Emergency Fund. Miracle Theatre intends to double its efforts and produce two plays, Here on the Flight Path and Lunenburg.
“We've just finished casting the production already and so far we've generated over $60,000," said Price. “It's a cause we're concerned about ... There are a large number of very elderly people who are struggling, struggling to pay rent, to get enough food on the table, to have enough money so they're not rationing their medications ... It turns out that a quarter of our seniors in this province are trying to live on less than $23,000 a year. That's not enough. Anybody who goes shopping for their groceries knows that that's not enough."
The goal is to be able to give seniors support when it's needed.
"Some of these seniors who are quiet about it or are proud or just don't have the wherewithal to advocate themselves are in very bad circumstances," Price said. "So we're creating the Prince George Seniors Emergency Fund to take care of these people. If somebody is short $150 for their rent or in a lineup to get into a senior's facility and they've got to wait 12 months, well, this fund can close that gap.”
Price also wanted to thank the “small army” of volunteers that helped make the purchase of the fire suppression equipment possible and the donors, sponsors and the people of Prince George who came to watch last year's production.
