The annual CP Holiday Train makes stops in Maple Ridge and Pitt Meadows Monday, Dec. 17.
The Holiday Train will stop in Maple Ridge at Port Haney Station at 7:30 p.m.
And for the fourth straight year, it is scheduled to stop in Pitt Meadows that same day, 8:45 p.m. at the Harris Road West Coast Express station.
The performers are the Sam Roberts Band, Kelly Prescott and Tracey Brown.
The Sam Roberts Band is a rock band based out of Montreal, Que.
Prescott is a third-generation singer who grew up in an award-winning studio, where she was able to hone her craft of songwriting. Penning such fan favourites as ‘Carryin’ Coal’ and ‘Coming Home To You (ft. Buddy Miller)’, her new music expands on her talent and unique vocals to reveal tracks like ‘Who Gets The Church’ and ‘Leavin’ Her’, which was released worldwide June 8.
Brown is fondly remembered as a member of the Family Brown, Canada’s most awarded country band. For 22 years, the band released 17 albums on MCA and RCA records, had a nationally syndicated show, “Family Brown Country” for 13 seasons and toured extensively in Canada and parts of Europe. The band consisted of father, Papa Joe Brown, brother Barry and sister Lawanda. In the ’90s, she continued recording with Barry Brown and husband, Randall Prescott, under the name of Prescott-Brown releasing two CDs with Sony Canada.
The Canadian Train departed Montreal on Nov. 27, travelling west through Ontario, Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Alberta, and British Columbia for its final show of the 2018 CP Holiday Train tour in Port Coquitlam on Dec. 18.
This year, the Holiday Train is asking for healthy donations for food banks to help combat heart disease.
“Heart disease is one of the fastest growing health challenges in North America and the leading cause of death worldwide. But if you lead a healthy lifestyle including maintaining a heart-healthy diet, heart disease is manageable and may be preventable.
Follow Food Banks Canada’s heart-healthy donation recommendations and bring:
• grain products – whole grain bread, brown rice, whole wheat crackers, hot and cold cereals, granola bars, muffins;
• vegetables and fruit – canned fruit and vegetables, 100 per cent fruit juice, tomato sauce, canned soup, tomato juice, and applesauce;
• milk products – dry milk powder, milk puddings, cheese spreads, fresh milk, yogurt, and cheese (if accepted);
• meat and alternatives – canned meat and fish, peanut butter, canned baked beans, dried or canned beans and lentils;
• reduced sodium canned and jarred goods are preferred;
• check with your community’s food bank to learn if they accept fresh produce.
Donations of food and cash in Maple Ridge and Pitt Meadows benefit the Friends in Need Food Bank.
The two local Holiday Train stops together raised $14,000 for Friends in Need last year.
Firefighters raised another $11,500 at the two stops, while attendees in both cities contributed $5,400 more.
The Holiday Train also helped collect more than 3,000 pounds of food for Friends in Need last year, roughly the same as the year before.
“This is our No. 1 fundraiser,” said Mary Robson, director of Friends in Need. “This is huge for us.”
Attendance at the two stops surpassed 7,000 people.
“It is a privilege for CP to be able to run a program like this and connect with so many communities across our network. I want to personally thank each individual who has made a donation over the past 20 years – your collective efforts have made the Holiday Train a huge success for two decades,” said Keith Creel, CP’s president and chief executive officer.