UPDATE Jan 2024
We’ve officially broken ground on our new building! Thanks to everyone who has donated to help get this project off the ground and to the countless hours put in by our members to make this a reality.
Every year more and more people flood in to Chilliwack’s backcountry to enjoy the incredible outdoor recreation opportunities this area has to offer. As a result, the demands on CSAR’s unpaid volunteers increases every year.
For the past 15 years, CSAR members have been saving funds to put towards a new facility by donating expenses back to the team. Whilst we’re proud of our efforts, we’re still a long way short.
What began as an unofficial band of outdoor enthusiasts willing to give up their time to help those in need in the Chilliwack backcountry – has become a vital part of Chilliwack’s emergency response.
With 121 call outs in 2021, 45 members and 14 vehicles – our current facility is ageing and too small to accommodate the training and equipment needs of the 2nd busiest SAR group in BC.
What began as an unofficial band of outdoor enthusiasts willing to give up their time to help those in need in the Chilliwack backcountry – has become a vital part of Chilliwack’s emergency response.
With 121 call outs in 2021, 45 members and 14 vehicles – our current facility is ageing and too small to accommodate the training and equipment needs of the 2nd busiest SAR group in BC.
1986
2023
Despite exponential growth, 1000’s of volunteer hours, increased training needs and the professional demands of Search and Rescue in BC, the funding model remains a decentralized mixture of contributions from different entities.
Chilliwack SAR receives funding from EMBC (Provincial), BCSARA, FVRD, City of Chilliwack, Gaming Grants and donations – yet no single source exists for major infrastructure development or capital projects such as this.
We are incredibly grateful for the ongoing and additional support already pledged, yet we find ourselves short of meeting our requirements to make the new building a reality.
We have been working hard to raise funds to build a new, badly needed building and we have had some generous support from our traditional funding sources.
However, we estimate that we will still need to fundraise another $1,000,000 in order to complete this project and the clock is ticking!
Whether you are a corporation, an NGO or an individual that sees the value in having a 24/7 on-call backcountry rescue service, we are humbly asking for your help to complete this project
We are incredibly grateful for any donation, large or small. Our donation page makes it easy to contribute any amount but if you are looking at a corporate sponsorship, benefit in kind contribution or any other method of helping please get in touch and we’d love to chat.
Copyright © 2023 Chilliwack Search and Rescue. All Rights Reserved.