b'The first time the Canmore Hospital Ladies Auxiliary met in 1978, the population of Canmore was just shy of 3,000, the original Trudeau was prime minister of Canada and the hospital was on the other side of town. Much has changed, but the CHLA has never wavered in its mission to raise funds for much-needed medical equipment.Through burger barbeques, craft markets, raffles, fashion shows and countless other community fundraisers, this volunteer collective has raised more than $1 million over four decades. The first item they bought was a television. In the years that followed, they supplied the hospital with 19 more televisions BAKE SALESand everything from stretchers, heart monitors and a video gastroscope to a microwave, pediatric pajamas and Christmas lights. Their biggest-ticket item to & BBQS date is a Handi Van, purchased in 2000 for $95,000. The CHLA runs the hospital Tuck Shop (moving their wares to low-COVID-risk open-air markets during the summer of 2020), serves pulled pork at Canmores annual Miners Day SAVEcelebration and hands out gifts at the hospital each Christmas Day and to the first baby born each year.LIVES The Canmore Hospital Ladies Auxiliary has been raising funds for more than 40 yearsPriceless: The love and giggles contained in the quilts raffled off over the years.14the heart of canmore | 2021'