Helping local cancer patients, one car show at a time

By Serena Lapointe
 
Each year, towards the end of August, local car enthusiasts, as well as those from
around the region, flock to 35 Street in Whitecourt to take part in Ralcomm’s big car
show. It began ten years ago as a customer appreciation event featuring just the staff’s
vehicles and has since morphed into one of her biggest car shows in the area.
For Shop Service Manager Branden Lavallee, the event has been part of his journey at
Ralcomm almost since he started eleven years ago. “I brought it up. Before I started,
they did a customer appreciation day where they would have a free BBQ for people to
come by and say hi. I convinced them to turn it into a car show at the same time,”
explained Lavallee.
For two or three years, the dual event was a light mix and mingle, with the staff selling
food just to cover the cost and giving things away. “It was not a charitable event then. It
was just something we were doing to say thanks to the community,” he said. At first, it
was just the staff’s vehicles on display, but the event started to grow, and others began
joining, putting their vehicles on display too.
After losing one of their staff members (everyone’s favourite Ralcomm lady), the
conversation about making the event a charitable fundraiser started to grow. Though the
staff didn’t officially dedicate the show in her honour, the connection was there for those
who knew. “We get so many attendees, and we were seeing that number get larger, so
we wanted to do more. That was 100 percent us. No one approached us about doing
something. That was something that we wanted to do, and we were the ones who
reached out,” said Lavallee.
Through staff connections, the group chose to bring the Whitecourt Cancer and
Wellness Society in as their proceeds recipient, turning a fun car show into an impactful
event. The Whitecourt Cancer and Wellness Society is a volunteer-run nonprofit that
provides financial support, resources and education to Whitecourt cancer patients and
their families. One of the first supports they give to a newly diagnosed resident is a gas
and grocery package worth $500 to help ease financial stress. They also reimburse
parking costs associated with out-of-town appointments and can help with a one-time
emergency too.
Looking back, Lavallee said he couldn’t have foreseen that the car show would take on
a life of its own and grow as it has, from staff vehicles in year one to having ten to fifteen
vehicles, to a full parking lot to now having vehicles lining up and down the street. “I
wasn’t sure that it was something that we would continually have done. It didn’t really
gather outside attention until 2019, 2020. Then in 2020, we had a very brief window

where restrictions had eased a little bit, and I believe that year was our biggest to date,
because so many other events were cancelled.”
This year’s event marks ten years since Ralcomm first kickstarted its car show. Lavallee
said that through the years, there’s always been a core group of people who’ve shown
up. “They’re the guys you’ll see at the local meetups. They meet under the moniker of
the Whitecourt Wheels Car Club.”
He said one member specifically, Lana Ulbricht Miller, has been a big help. “In recent
years, with having kids and stuff, I’ve fallen a bit behind on being on top of things like
getting our poster out and our date announced, and she has definitely been the person
on my behind to get that information out as quickly as I can, just so she can share it. I
think it’s an important event to her too, not just being a spectator, but also as a
champion for the town and for all the things, all the good things that are happening here,
because no matter what’s happening, if it’s a good event, then Lana is definitely talking
and sharing about it,” said Lavallee.
This year’s event, which took place on August 22, welcomed nearly 90 vehicles and
raised $5,000 for the Whitecourt Cancer and Wellness Society. Since the first year the
society joined the event as a recipient, approximately $50,000 has been raised, all of
which is being used to support locals facing cancer. “I’m glad that we chose the charity
we did, to keep (the dollars) all in town,” said Lavallee.
Looking towards next year, Lavallee hopes to see more than cars and trucks lining the
street, reminding folks that nothing will be turned away. “We call it a classic car show,
but it doesn’t matter what it is because it’s a charitable event. Anybody that comes to
register a vehicle is helping out. So, if you have a cool boat or a motorcycle or, hey, if
someone wants to trailer in an airplane for it, we would love that.”
Lavallee said that he really wants to get it out there so that they see even more
numbers on the street next year. Every participant means more is raised. “Everybody is
welcome. We make the rules, and there are no rules. It truly does not matter. We just
want everyone to come enjoy the day. I personally have a Jeep. It doesn’t have to be a
vehicle that’s dressed to the nines, like a standard car show. When we say anyone, we
mean it.”
Lavallee thanked all participants and event goers for attending this year’s show. He also
thanked local caterer Kelly Gray for taking over cooking duties for the tenth anniversary
event. “It was really nice and took the weight off our shoulders of having to deal with
cooking and serving. It helped out a lot.” Next year’s event is slated for August 21.