TRICITYNEWS.COM EXTRAS >>
TC ARTS/ENT.: PAGE A14
shakespeare talk in Coquitlam
TC
Greens will be neutral in transportation referendum / Flu bug hits this region hard
WEDNESDAY, JAN. 7, 2015 Your community. Your stories
TRI-CITY
NEWS CRIME
Senior twigs to attempt at scam Sarah Payne
The Tri-CiTy News
SUBMITTED PHOTO
Operation Red Nose co-ordinator Chris Wilson (left) with volunteers Bruno Bandiera, Tyler Beatch and Lori Halcro.
OPERATION RED NOSE TRI-CITIES
Safer streets & bigger bucks Sarah Payne The Tri-CiTy News
The number of Operation Red Nose (ORN) rides went up — and the donations went way up — with the help of 275 volunteers who ensured more than a thousand Tri-City drivers got home safely
over the holiday season. Volunteers provided 1,011 rides over nine nights in late November and December, including New Year’s Eve, which was up from 936 in 2013. Donations jumped 19% from $27,600 to $32,940. “We’re very happy with the increase in the number
of rides, especially the increase in the average donation,” said program co-ordinator Chris Wilson, noting it was the busiest year since starting Operation Red Nose in 2007. Wilson said the group has worked hard to promote ORN both to volunteers and to the commu-
nity to use the service. “I think there’s better awareness of the program, how it works and that the donations go to KidSport. We also provided rides for a number of Christmas parties and many of the companies were very generous, too.” Sponsorships from
Metropolis at Metrotown and the Hard Rock Casino Vancouver meant all of ORN’s costs were covered, ensuring 100% of the donations went to KidSport. Money raised this year will mean about 150 lowincome kids will be able to participate in sports. Wilson said just two of
see SUSPECT, page A4
the nine nights were short on volunteers, resulting in longer waits “and some pretty frustrated customers.” New Year’s Eve was again the busiest night of the season, with 34 teams of three people each on duty to provide 180 rides. see DONATIONS, page A8
Assessments are in and, in many cases locally, they’re much higher see how the Tri-Cities did in annual property assessments: pg. a3
CONTACT ThE TRI-CITY NEWS: newsroom@tricitynews.com
A Coquitlam woman is hoping to warn fellow seniors about a phone scam after she caught on to a suspicious call on the weekend. The caller, who said she was with MasterCard, used the woman’s name and notified her that because of her outstanding credit history, the company would lower her interest rate and remove her annual $110 fee. “I told her, ‘Don’t worry, I pay it off every month,’ but the fee got my attention because I didn’t realize I had been paying this fee all this time,” the woman said. “But I’m 74 this month and I’ve had a couple of strokes, and I don’t think quite as clearly as I used to.” The caller asked her to confirm her birthdate and, after providing the first four numbers of the woman’s Sears MasterCard — those numbers are the same on all MasterCards — asked her to verify the remaining numbers to get the yearly fee taken off.
More charges have been laid in December assaults and car jacking: pg. a4
/ sales@tricitynews.com / delivery@tricitynews.com / 604-525-6397