Review staff
Thanks to a new twist on an old idea, some lucky shopper in Rimbey is going to have a marvelous Christmas.
“We have a new look to our Rimbey Bucks. We’ve gone from paper to plastic and they’re available to the entire public,” said Mary Rose Barr, president of the Rimbey Chamber of Commerce. “So if you want to buy your staff or friend or family Rimbey Bucks, it doesn’t have to be designated to one retailer and is almost town-wide.”
The 2009 promotion will see Rimbey Bucks equivalent to cash at virtually every retail outlet in the community whether the merchant is a member of the chamber or not.
“What we are promoting is that the Rimbey Bucks are available to the public to give as Christmas gifts and they do not confine the shopper to just one retailer,” Barr added. “So instead of going into the Rimbey Co-op for example, and buying a gift certificate that can only be spent there, you can buy Rimbey Bucks which you can spend for eye care, pay on your mortgage, use them for a car loan or go to the drug store and buy whatever suites you. It’s much broader, more convenient and hopefully, more appealing to people.”
From there, merchants can exchange the Rimbey Bucks at the local branch of the ATB for cash, making it a win-win situation for both retailers and shoppers. In addition, the Rimbey Chamber of Commerce will have draw boxes at participating businesses to win Rimbey Bucks in the amount of $500, $300 and $200.
The chamber of commerce will also promote its annual 12 Days of Christmas, that will see merchants and members putting up prizes that will be drawn for during the 12 days prior to Christmas. As an extra added bonus, each participating merchant will throw a second prize into the mix for a draw to be made on Dec. 23 that will see the winner cart home all of the combined prizes. All the prizes involved in the promotion will also be on display at the ATB, according to Barr, is already nearing 40 in total.
The chamber also announced that Santa Night and the Festival of Lights will be held on Dec. 3 at the Beatty Heritage House beginning at 3:30 p.m. with free pictures of St. Nick along with free hotdogs and hot chocolate. As well, Lyle Lester and his team of horses will also be on hand for haywagon rides through the community.
At 5 p.m. sharp, the Christmas lights will go on at the Beatty House to officially begin the holiday season in Rimbey.
Prize entry boxes will be on display at retail outlets throughout the community with the names of each individual prize winner being re-entered into the draw drum for the grand prize draw.