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Film fundraiser tonight at ODSS to support Relay for Life

May 25, 2017   ·   0 Comments

By Mike Pickford

With the 2017 Dufferin Relay for Life fast approaching, one faculty member at Orangeville District Secondary School (ODSS) is making one final fundraising push to raise some additional money prior to the big event on Friday, June 9.

Scott Jordan, an English teacher at the school, has organized a film screening to take place there this evening, with donations being taken at the door and going to the ODSS Bears’ Relay for Life team. The movie – Wilderness Trails – is a 40-minute flick featuring the experiences Mr. Jordan and his friend Darryl Phillips encountered as they tackled Killarney Provincial Park’s 80 kilometre LaCloche Silhouette Trail last summer.

The duo completed the trek over a 10-day period between July 27 and August 5 and captured some incredible footage of the beautiful scenery on show as they traveled through the park, located on Georgian Bay approximately four hours north of Orangeville. A long-time canoeist and first-time long distance hiker, Mr. Jordan is hoping to educate those in attendance about the true beauty of Canada.

“Whenever people think about truly beautiful trails, their minds probably wander to the Appalachian Trail and Pacific Crest Trail down in the United States, but we have some incredible spots right here in Canada,” Mr. Jordan said. “The focus of this film is primarily to show what it is like for inexperienced people to go and try a long distance hiking trip, but even more than that it’s about showing off how beautiful a country Canada truly is.”

He added, “This part of Canada is particularly mind-blowing. When you look at the photographs of the mountains and you see the footage of the film, it doesn’t look like any other place in the country. We want to show off one of the most beautiful places we’ve ever seen, and the awesome part is that it’s practically right in our back yard.”

Throughout the film Mr. Jordan and Mr. Phillips, a seasoned photographer from St. Catharines, make several pit stops, showing off breathtaking views of lakes and valleys from the lofty trail. It wasn’t all fun and games for the pair, who estimated they climbed and subsequently dropped the equivalent of the CN Tower 14 times over the course of their journey.

“It wasn’t a particularly long hike, but it sure was challenging. The elevation changes in Killarney are incredible. The LaCloche Mountains at one time had higher peaks than the Rockies, so there were places where we would have a one kilometre change in elevation over the course of a day,” Mr. Jordan explained.

While he is excited to share his experiences with his students, family and friends at the screening, Mr. Jordan says he’s more looking forward to seeing how the event can help benefit the Dufferin Relay for Life.

“As much as I talk about the hike and how this film practically embodies it, my primary reason for putting this together is to try and use it as a Relay fundraiser – that’s what I’m most excited about,” Mr. Jordan said. “Relay for Life is something that is incredibly close to everyone here at ODSS. Hopefully this screening can inspire some different people to come out and learn about our cause and why we’re so passionate about doing what we do.”

He added, “It’s a little fitting that the film focuses on two guys conquering a trail. Hiking is all about putting one foot in front of the other and carrying out. Similarly, with our Relay event, it’s all about walking around that track and really signifies people facing obstacles and conquering them and being successful in what they do.”

The screening of Wilderness Trails takes place in the ODSS library at 7 p.m. this evening (May 25), with donations accepted at the door. For more information, contact Mr. Jordan at scott.jordan@ugdsb.on.ca.

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