A former Jasperite has a juicy idea for a fundraiser in the wake of the Jasper wildfire.

Roger Bailey—known to his friends and family as Woody—is right now (Tuesday, August 27) driving a truck full of B.C. cherries from his farm in the Okanagan to the Jasper Legion, where staff and volunteers have been feeding hundreds of residents and first responders on the daily. 

“I figured it would be a good thing to help out,” Bailey said.

Among other varietals, Bailey grows staccato and centennial cherries at Kalwood Farms, in Oyana, south of Vernon. The famous fruit will be available for members of the public at the Jasper Legion starting at 10 a.m. on Wednesday, August 28. Donations will go to the Jasper Legion to help with their food budget.

“I have some good friends who travelled out here after the fire. It occurred to me I could help.”

His generosity is particularly sweet considering that like many Okanagan pitted fruit farmers, Bailey lost most of his crop in a deep January freeze. Only about two percent survived. Most years, he’d have 140 pickers to harvest the bounty; this year he only required four.

“We picked for the whole season what we’d normally pick in a day,” he said.

Insurance and government programs kick in during hard freezes such as the one experienced this winter, but they only cover between 25-50 percent of the losses—the rest are eaten by the operator.

Tomorrow, however, what’s being served up will be a boon, not a bust. Thanks to Kalwood Farms and a few industrious Jasperites, those in need will be feasting on either the ripe B.C. cherries Bailey is trucking in, or the food that the Legion will soon be able to purchase thanks to the fundraiser.

For his part, Woody—who did two stints in Jasper in the 1980s—is looking forward to seeing some familiar faces.

“Come on down to the Legion at 10,” he said.

Bob Covey // bob@thejasperlocal.com