RVP File Photo

The George McDougall Mustangs celebrate their 2011 Airdrie Bowl win over the Bert Church Chargers. This year the event, which is slated to be held Oct. 4, will feature a fundraiser for Rocky View Schools' Food For Thought Program.

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Airdrie Bowl football game to feature fundraiser

The Airdrie Bowl has been a community mainstay for nearly a decade, but this year it’s breaking new ground and giving back to a vital, local program.

The 2012 cross-town rivalry game between George McDougall and Bert Church High School football teams will feature a food drive and a raffle with proceeds going to the Rocky View School’s (RVS) Food for Thought program.

The program supports initiatives like Snack Attack, which gives Rocky View snacks for students who don’t have, and the R.J. Hawkey Breakfast Program, which provides students who go to school hungry with a nutritious breakfast.

“Community collaborations to set up the food programs within RVS is essential to the success and to realize the vision,” said Nikki McAllister, program coordinator with Food for Thought. “It takes a lot of dedication to make these programs work for the students. Volunteers from within our schools and from the community, along with the donations, prove the power of collaboration.”

The fundraiser was spearheaded by Covy Moore, a George MacDougall graduate and an Airdrie Bowl fan. Moore originally planned for the drive and raffle to benefit the Airdrie Food Bank, but the organization’s Executive Director, Lori McRitchie, suggested that because it was an RVS event, the proceeds should benefit an RVS program. Moore is hoping the fundraiser draws more attention to the annual football game.

“It’s a really cool event that’s been held in Airdrie since 2004,” he said. “I was in school and I got to see the first one and lots of people came out to watch it, but over the years it’s dwindled to only a few parents.

“It would be really cool to pack the field, like an American-style, Friday Night Lights idea. The best way to do that in Airdrie is to associate a cause with it.”

Fans who bring a non-perishable food item to the game will be entered into a door prize draw to win a Calgary Stampeders’ jersey. Raffle tickets will also be sold for $2 each with a chance to win another Stampeders’ jersey, a pair of Stampeders’ tickets and two tickets to the Calgary Hitmen Teddy Bear Toss Game against the Kooteney Ice on Dec. 2.

The Mustangs and the Chargers will face off for the Airdrie Bowl Oct. 4 at Genesis Place with kick off at 4:30 p.m. The series currently stands at 5-3 for Bert Church with George Mac looking to retain their 2011 title.

“It’s always a great battle and it’s a game we get pumped up on without a doubt,” said Brent Legault, Mustangs’ head coach. “It’s exciting to see from a coach’s perspective. I’ve been around since the first one. (Including a fundraiser) is something Andy Kirk and I have talked about in the past, but have had very little time to do it, so it’s awesome to see other members of the community helping out with it as well.”