A Salmon Arm Silverhawk celebrated her 6th birthday by taking in a Silverbacks game and raising funds for a local animal rescue.
On Monday, Feb. 19, Lily Bradbury was with friends and family at Shaw Centre where, from VIP room booked for her birthday party (she’d turned six on Feb. 17), they enjoyed the Family Day Silverbacks game versus the Penticton Vees.
Lily’s mother, Misty Bradbury, said this is her daughter’s first year playing hockey with Salmon Arm Minor Hockey’s Silverhawks, adding Lily has also become a Silverbacks fan.
Invitations for Lily’s party included a request, that in lieu of gifts, she would be collecting donations for Shuswap Paws Rescue Society.
“She’s got so much stuff already and I think she realizes that yeah, she didn’t need more toys… so I was like why don’t you collect money for something that you want to donate to,” explained Misty, adding she used to work with an animal rescue in Alberta. “(Lily) is well aware of animal rescues and how they operate, so when I said what do you want to do with the money – pick a charity that you think something or someone could use the money for, she brought up animals right away and she said, ‘I don’t want them to starve, I want them to have food and water.’ So I said well, let’s raise money for a local animal rescue.”
With help from her friends and fellow Silverbacks fans, Lily raised a total of $729.15.
“When we were at the game, during second and third period, we made a sign and the girls stood outside the room with their birthday noisemakers to gather attention, and a bunch of people that were there for the game came by and were putting money in her hat,” said Misty. “They were all so proud – it was great to see all the young kids collecting money for a good cause and they were so happy to do it.”
Lily’s parents are also proud.
“Me and her dad, we’re really proud of her that she was happy to do it and that she wasn’t like, I want toys instead,” said Misty. “She was selfless and thought about the animals and so she realizes that other people need things more than she does… She’s a really caring girl and we hope it continues throughout her life.”
Shuswap Paws is run entirely by volunteers. For more information, visit the society’s page on Facebook.
Read more: Shuswap animal rescue a whisker away from capacity
Read more: From tips to tails, Shuswap pub pays it forward to Paws