Well, if you were to ask Selfling founder James Higgins what our first fundraiser was going to be like 2 hours BEFORE Legos & Lagers 2017, he probably wouldn’t know what to say. This was totally new territory for us!
Yet, as our crew of hard-working volunteers were busy setting out door prizes and containers of Lego for our contestants, it all seemed to come together. Our guests started to file in, raffle tickets started to disappear, we even sold some our bracelets and AMP chargers!
The Toad & Turtle Barlow in northeast Calgary proved to be a fantastic host, giving us ample room for tons of construction.
As our teams busied themselves with their models, each one checking its drivability on the Legos & Lagers ramp, even the servers started building their own model!
Our 6 teams did not take long setting in on their Lego Racers. It quickly appeared that we had people from many different disciplines vying for the big prize. Each team took to their Racer with a different idea of what would get the most distance.
Yet it wasn’t just about performance. Team models were also judged on appearance.
After all the building was done, our judges, Brad and Cece, got in to have a look. The big winner for the best design was Team Discovery Channel!
In the end, Team Brick Addicts won by a wide margin. Their car traveled down the Legos & Lagers Speed Ramp and stopped just shy of the furthest wall. This told us a lot about what makes the best practical Lego Racer. As you could see from the gallery, Team Brick Addicts did not build either the longest nor the heaviest Racer.
It’s all about balance.
Team Brick Addicts’ ingenuity won them the coveted prize for longest distance: The Toolshed Brewery prize pack. Along with the snapback hat and beer pail, they have a free brewery tour and tasting for ten people!
Our contestants and a couple of the Toad & Turtle team members managed to walk away with some great prizes as well!
We want to give big thanks to all those who donated prizes for Legos & Lagers:
- Neurvana Health
- Reg’s Auto Service
- Pink Lime Salon
- Toolshed Brewery
- Flying Squirrel Air Park
- Monster Mini Golf
- R&R With Jorja
- Hippo Hug
- Down to Earth Creations & Wellness
and last but not least, the acclaimed Calgary photographer, Neil Zeller.
This was an amazing night and our donors really came through with some fantastic prizes.
Our volunteers deserve some of their own special praise as well. Thanks to our Legos & Lagers team for giving your time to our fundraiser!
- Jorja & Kim (Lego sortation and raffle tickets)
- Brad and Cece (Lego sortation and judging)
- Victoria and Shauna (Lego station and photography)
- Lorraine Mckenzie (Lego sortation and ramp testing)
We think Legos & Lagers was a big success. In the end, we were able to book two Selfling team members in for some much-needed training. Who would have thought that a night playing with Lego would make such an impact?
Just as a reminder, the training our contestants and prize donors helped us to provide is Safe Talk and ASIST. Safe Talk and ASIST are very important tools used in the event a teen using the Selfling Teen Support App is in crisis. In a crisis, there is a correct way to respond and this training helps us do that. We could not have done it without the support of our Lego Racer teams and the local businesses and anonymous donors who provided us with prizes!
We can’t wait to do this again. From the sounds of it, neither can our contestants! It would be great to hear from all of them again, and hopefully, we might get even more teams!
Will you join us next year?