For 12 years, Operation Red Nose volunteers have picked up and dropped off residents who needed a safe ride home during a holiday weekend, and John Alexandersen has been there for almost every night.
Alexanderson worked his first Operation Red Nose shift in 2011 and hasn’t missed a night since. On Friday, the Prince Albert Lions honoured him for those efforts by inducting him into Rudy’s Circle. The award acknowledges local volunteers who are very committed to Operation Red Nose and their community.
“John’s been an awesome support for the program all these years,” Lions club spokesman Randy Braaten said after presenting Alexandersen with the Rudy’s Circle pin and certificate.
“He’s usually the bright cheery voice people hear when they phone into Operation Red Nose. It’s, ‘This is Operation Red Nose, how can we help you?’ And then we’re off and running.”
Alexandersen said Operation Red Nose was a great idea, and one he’s always supported, even before he began volunteering.
“Growing up, it was something I did,” he explained. “I was one of the guys who made sure people got home safe and did a lot of chauffeuring people home. I just thought it was a great cause.”
Alexandersen became the group’s dispatcher almost by accident. When he started, six to eight people were in the Lions Club Room taking calls and relaying information to the volunteers who had to pick clients up and drive them home in their car.
The whole system was inefficient, so Alexandersen began creating a new one. Ten years later, the system is still in use.
“The dispatching of the teams was elaborate,” he remembered. “I saw an opportunity to expedite that and I wrote some code and ended up writing the software to do it. I hadn’t planned on being the person who ran it because I enjoyed the interaction in the field.”
After years as a dispatcher, Alexandersen found a replacement in 2023, allowing him to rejoin the drivers and navigators who make sure Prince Albert residents get home safely after they’ve been drinking.
That year, Operation Red Nose provided 170 rides to 377 Prince Albert residents. That’s a significant jump over their 2022 numbers, when they first returned after COVID, but still below what they’re used to.
Alexandersen said he hopes to see that number increase again in 2024.
“I’m longing for the days where it gets as busy as it used to be,” he said. “It’s great what we’re doing. Don’t get me wrong. I hope people use it in its entirety. The more people, the better.”
Operation Red Nose starts its 2024 service at 9 p.m. on Friday, Nov. 29. Rides will be available in exchange for a donation. The service runs until around 2 a.m., except for New Year’s Eve, when it goes a bit later.
Riders are available on Nov. 29-30, Dec. 6-7, Dec. 13-14, Dec. 20-21, and Dec. 31 to Jan. 1.
Braaten said volunteers are the biggest need this year. Operation Red Nose receives strong support from the local business community. Many restaurants will donate pizza, donuts, and other food for volunteers, while local car dealerships will provide shuttle vehicles to help out with drop-offs.
Each volunteer team is made up of a driver and navigator to take clients home in their own car, plus a shuttle vehicle driver, who takes the driver and navigator back to the Operation Red Nose headquarters at the Coronet Hotel after drop-off.
Volunteers can chose which nights they work, but Braaten said New Year’s Eve is their biggest need. Volunteers do not use their own vehicles.
Braaten said residents need to complete a free police check before they can volunteer. To sign up, call 306-763-6673, or email rbraaten@sasktel.net or princealbert@operationrednose.com.
