(Montreal) After a year of absence due to the pandemic, the Operation Red Nose escort service resumed service on Friday evening, not without noting that recruitment, which has always been a “battle horse”, is even more difficult.
“It’s a challenge that is not unknown to us. This year, we were waiting to see after this first evening. And, indeed, we can see that the current situation may have exacerbated this challenge, ”confided in an interview with Marilyn Vigneault, director of communications and marketing at Opération Nez rouge.
A total of 293 rides were made during the night from Friday to Saturday by 549 volunteers. By comparison, there were nearly 2,400 rides by about 2,200 volunteers on the same night two years ago.
The organizers underline in broad outline that it is to compare “apples with oranges” since about sixty regions were in operation in Quebec in 2019 whereas they were about twenty this year, the local organizations having had the choice to to come back or not.
The fact remains that, despite the downside, the figures speak for themselves, notes Mme Vigneault, who attributes the difficulties to the pandemic, to the shortage of manpower and that of volunteers experienced by several organizations.
All in all, the organizers say they are on the whole “satisfied” with the first evening. They mention that the first weekend is generally quieter since it is not yet the month of December and that the holiday spirit is not fully installed, not to mention that the weather was less favorable on Friday night. to Saturday in several regions.
Mme Vigneault said she was “very confident” that the volunteers will answer the call for the rest of the campaign, given the very high rate of Quebecers who believe that Operation Red Nose is necessary and that it is a pleasant experience.
A sanitary measures guide has been put in place, she said. Those who wish to register as a volunteer can do so on the organization’s website until December 31st.