A holiday hot rod in High River used to spread Christmas cheer will be raffled off next month. Larry and Leslie Stadnick, owners of The Stash Luxury Garages, built the bright red truck back in 2023. Since then, they’ve taken the vehicle – dubbed the Christmas Charity Truck – to corporate parties and holiday events where it not only served as a cool decoration but was also used to collect donations for local charities. Now, the truck will be raffled off in support of southern Alberta children’s charities “The Christmas Charity Truck has been a hit -- but it’s taken a lot of time,” Leslie said. “We decided we can do a whole lot more with the money we receive from the raffle over the next ten years.” The couple is selling 2,000 tickets for $100 each with the hope they can raise $200,000. “We’ve collected toys for years, and now we feel this is going to be way better for the kids,” Larry said. “But I’m sad to see her go; I love driving her.” Larry says he and his wife came up with idea for the Christmas Charity Truck because they’re both “Christmas crazy” and also wanted to give back to the community. Tiffany Gordon, president of PGA of Canada, is a longtime friend and supporter of the Stadniks. “The truck just brings people together for a common goal that’s much needed in this community,” she said. “Some of these smaller (communities) get forgotten (about) because there’s a lot of other opportunities to donate (to) – so this is something they would just drive around, fill, drive it around, fill it – and all of a sudden it started escalating and escalating.” Paula Bannerman with The Children’s Cottage Society says the Christmas Charity Turck has made a big difference over the years. “They show up a few days before Christmas and drop off a huge load of toys and diapers and baby wipes for our families,” she said. “It’s mind blowing actually – all the good that they do in the community and all the different charities that they support.” “Every year we’re worried that we’re not going to have enough gifts to provide for families,” said Jennifer Weisgerber with The Magic of Christmas Foothills. “But the charity truck has always given us some excellent quality gifts for families, so we’re really fortunate. Car collector Roger Hamel says while the truck is valued at roughly $92,000 - it’s priceless in the eyes of a collector. “To own this truck would mean a great deal to anybody that’s a collector because it’s unique, it’s custom-built and it’s raised so much money and brought in so many toys for the children that it’s pretty much infamous in the area.” The Stadniks say all money raised from the raffle will be placed into a trust and divided by ten to give to charities. “We’re just happy to be able to help, and I think for another ten years we’ll be making children happy at Christmas time,” Leslie said. The truck can be viewed and raffle tickets purchased in Calgary during GlobalFest at Spruce Meadows on Aug. 27, 28 and 29. To learn more about the raffle, you can visit ChristmasCharityTruck.ca.
