Fundraising event aims to provide wheelchairs for youth attending summer camp

The Warriors Gala: A Night of Dreams celebrates community, resilience, accessibility, and inclusion, all while supporting a great cause.

A charity event in Ottawa is raising funds to provide two wheelchairs for youth attending an accessible summer camp in Perth, Ont. designed for children with disabilities.

The third annual Warriors Gala to Support Accessibility for Youth will be taking place at the Orpheus Musical Theatre on Saturday, March 21. The event is organized by Dreamers Walk Canada, a non-profit that offers support to people with disability, with a focus on supporting those with cerebral palsy.

“Our mission for this year is to donate two wheelchairs to Easter Seals Ontario’s Camp Merrywood,” Justin Camarero, vice president of Dreamers Walk Canada, told CTV’s Your Morning Ottawa on Tuesday. “It’s a fully accessible camp in Perth, Ontario. It just gives kids with disabilities a chance to experience that fun that everyone else can.”

March is cerebral palsy month as well as Easter Seals Awareness month, and David Humphries, the president and founder of Dreamers Walk Canada, says it’s the perfect time for the fundraising event.

“We’re lucky in that way because we’re a cerebral palsy organization and an Easter Seals supporters, so we can put them together,” Humphries told CTV’s Your Morning Ottawa on Tuesday.

The event will feature a roast beef dinner cooked by Sandee’s Country Kitchen, as well as performances from The Kyd Can Sing Studios and Ulyn Berkeley-Gaskin. The keynote speaker will be Travis Iverson, a young man with a disability who makes adaptable clothing, and the event will also feature a silent auction.

Humphries says the wheelchairs that are being donated will also be on display.

Bell Media is a sponsor of the event and CTV’s Natalie van Rooy will be the evening’s M.C.

“It’s going to be a great night,” Humphries said.

Tickets are available for purchase online until March 16.

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