The CPKC Holiday Train made its annual stop in Airdrie on Friday night and is slated to arrive in Calgary on Saturday.
The festive train made its highly anticipated stop, lighting up the tracks and spreading joy at Nose Creek Park — a location already brimming with Christmas magic thanks to Airdrie’s Festival of Lights.
The train is touring through Canada and the United States from Nov. 20 to Dec. 19 to raise awareness for food insecurity with a variety of talented musicians in over 160 live performances.
As thousands in Airdrie gathered to see the CPKC Holiday Train, many also took the opportunity to contribute to the food bank and other local organizations.
Since its inception in 1999, the train has raised over $24.3 million and collected over 5.3 million pounds of food to support community food banks in Canada and the U.S.
And Airdrie saw an impressive turnout too, with many doing their part for those less fortunate than them.
Michelle Pirzek, the coordinator of the Airdrie Festival of Lights, estimates around 10,000 people were there.
“Both food and cash, donations have been up and it’s fantastic to see everybody coming out to support the cause,” said Airdrie Food Bank volunteer manager Abigail Bergin.
The CPKC Holiday Train rolls into Calgary on Saturday at 6:30 p.m.
Canadian music group the Anyway Gang, featuring Sam Roberts, Chris Murphy from Sloan, Hollerado’s Menno Versteeg, and Dave Monks of Tokyo Police Club, will be performing live.
Spokesperson Terry Kunia told CityNews in early December that the group travels on board with the crew for seven to 10 days and will perform three to four shows a day.
The train will be at the Anderson CTrain station at 5:45 p.m., with the show starting at 6 p.m. in the South Parking Lot.
More information on the Holiday Train and its route can be found online.
With files from Phil Wood