A successful 20th annual Give a Little Life Day Radiothon will help equip the Victoria Hospital. (Boreal Healthcare Foundation/Facebook)

By paNOW Staff

Radiothon

Smashing success: Give a Little Life Day radiothon doubles 2024 total and raises $848,440

Dec 5, 2025 | 6:01 PM

Two decades after first starting, the Give a Little Life Day radiothon is proving to stand the test of time with $848,440 raised this year – doubling the amount raised last year.

Cody Barnett, CEO of the Boreal Health Care Foundation, said he was in awe of the amount of money raised and the support given.

“Give a Little Life Day is always a highlight of the year for me. The community has really rallied together,” he said.

“We’re having a fantastic year in fundraising for the community’s greatest need, which is our health care. We can’t do all the fun things we want if we don’t have our health.”

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In 2024, the grand total raised was $376,000 – a sum that was reached shortly after 3 p.m. this year.

Santa Claus made a special trip to attend the Radiothon. (Boreal Healthcare Foundation/Facebook)

Significant donations came in the form of large matching pledges which included Prince Albert’s Gord and Barb Broda promising up to $100,000 and Ruszkowski Enterprises saying they would match up to $30,000 if that could be raised in the final hour.

“There’s been a lot of great stories and some remarkable donations,” Barnett said. “We’ve heard from a few families and their babies having been through the NICU or through pediatrics as their kids have had health issues and those are always the ones that stick with me.”

The event was broadcast live from Mann Northway GM on all three Pattison Media radio stations in Prince Albert. The money will help equip the new expansion of the Victoria Hospital with everything it will need to operate.

The Twyver family has been a repeat donor since the beginning of the fundraiser. This year, they were chosen as one of the ’20 for 20 champions.’ Each champion came up with their own fundraisers for the radiothon and 19-year-old Halle Twyver and her brother, 17-year-old Kai, were able to raise more than $2,300 with help from family and friends.

The Twyver family has been donating since the beginning of the Radiothon 20 years ago. (paNOW)

The fundraiser also saw another hospital foundation helping the cause. The Jim Pattison Children’s Hospital Foundation donated $20,000 to support the purchase of a retinal camera for the NICU at Victoria Hospital. The specialized equipment allows care teams to detect vision-threatening conditions in premature infants early.

“Each unit costs $178,000, and thanks to this partnership, we were able to close the gap and bring this life-changing technology home to Prince Albert,” said a representative from the Boreal Healthcare Foundation.

A significant donation was made from the Jim Pattison Children’s Hospital Foundation. (Submitted photo)

The Northern Lights Community Development Corporation made a significant donation of $20,000 as did engineering firm aodbt, among others.

During the radiothon, names of various donors from the community and other organizations were read on the air. One of the donations that came through anonymously was for $10,000.

Another significant donation came from aodbt. (Submitted photo/Rachel Riley)

While the Saskatchewan Government is funding the construction of the expansion, it’s up to the community to raise money for the equipment. That’s why the Boreal Healthcare Foundation holds fundraisers like ‘Give a Little Life Day.’

Through the Equip the Vic campaign, the Boreal Healthcare Foundation is looking to raise $40 million for all sorts of items, like an MRI and two new CT scanners, among other diagnostic equipment and operating room tools.

Donations can still be made online at www.givealittlelife.ca.

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