Hay River has won 2024’s Participaction Community Challenge, earning the town $100,000 toward sports and recreation programming.
National organizers made the announcement on Tuesday.
Hay River spent most of June at the top of national rankings for people taking part in events around the town that helped them get active, ranging from organized morning bike rides to the annual territorial track and field championship.
The town then had to submit documentation explaining why it should be chosen from 50 finalists.
In a statement, Mayor of Hay River Kandis Jameson said this year’s Participaction challenge had made a “tremendous impact” on the South Slave community, which was hit by a flood in 2022 and two separate wildfire evacuations in 2023.
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The town’s recreation staff had billed Participaction as one more step toward Hay River’s long-term recovery from those disasters, helping people to have fun again and come together.
“With over 40 organizations tracking events, hundreds of participants, and thousands of hours of activity, a significant portion of the community came together with a common fitness goal that they knocked out of the park,” said Jameson.
“Once again Hay River has demonstrated its ability to punch above its weight as a hub of recreation.”
Courtney Fraser, Hay River’s recreation programming supervisor, said the department was “so proud of our community.”
“Hay River demonstrated their unstoppable spirit once again, with community members, sports groups and community groups all rallying to register participants and track their activities,” Fraser said in a town press release.
“We thank everyone who participated in the challenge alongside our Department of Recreation staff and we look forward to continuing to offer quality recreation programming.”
