News

Valley Vonka is Back for Another Sweet Spring Fundraiser

Posted on April 1, 2026

Originally published by the Comox Valley Record, April 1st, 2026

The Comox Valley Record is back again with the sweetest contest of 2026.

Presented by The Record, Hot Chocolates and Sure Copy Courtenay, this year’s Valley Vonka contest is sponsored by Peninsula Co-op, Quality Foods, Canadian Tire, Pacific Mist Sapa and Hydropath, Old House Hotel, Locals Restaurant, the Kingfisher Oceanside Resort and Ohspa.

The idea is simple: starting on April 1, there will be 3,000 chocolate bars available for sale at participating locations across the Valley. Five of those bars will have winning tickets, entitling the winner to one of five amazing prizes from our sponsors. The bars, made by the Valley’s own Hot Chocolates, are a prize in and of themselves, but there might be something extra special inside.

With prizes worth up to $1,000 up for grabs, there really isn’t a reason to not participate. Prizes are:

– The Old House and Spa, Local Restaurant: Dinner and a family spa day (value $1,000)
– The Kingfisher Oceanside Resort and Spa: Healing escape in the healing caves with four people (value $780)
– Shopping Spree at Canadian Tire (worth $1,000)
– Fill the Fridge: A Quality Foods gift card (worth $1,000)

When and if you find a golden ticket, don’t wait! Bring it down to the Comox Valley Record office (407D Fifth Street, Courtenay) to claim your prize.

All proceeds from the contest go directly to Y.A.N.A. which recently celebrated its 40th anniversary.

YANA’s mandate is to provide financial support families who need to travel outside of the Comox Valley, even if it’s to Campbell River, Nanaimo or Victoria to access medical care for children under 19 or pregnant mothers. The main focus though offering fully-furnished accommodation for those travelling for medical reasons to Vancouver.

Over the years, YANA has helped well over 2,000 children and families.

“We have super-solid data from the past 10 years and it was at 2,000 children helped with 4500 medical trips and it was $2.7million in support that’s been given in the past 10 years” said Executive Director Kelly Barnie.

”In one year it was about $379,000 in support and we were 586 trips last year” she adds.

She says the group went through a transition year in the 90’s where the non-profit went from a fully volunteer organization to one where the first part-time staff member was hired to run the operation. Today there are two part-time and two full-time employees along with a volunteer core of 70-100 people.

Many of those volunteers have direct connections to youth and families who were assisted by the charity.

“Most people, whether it’s one degree of separation or a few, most people in town 40 years know someone who’s been helped” she says.

While there are currently other similar organizations such as Jeneece Place in Victoria or Ronald McDonald houses worldwide, Barnie believes YANA’s concept was the first in British Columbia.

”There are some things that are similar to YANA but that is my understanding, the model of supporting funding and accommodation is the first” she says.

Barnie says the Comox Valley group is often called upon from other communities to get information on, including on how the group handles its finances.

”Keeping costs low, making good choices investing wisely and working hard to fundraise. We’re 97 per cent self-funded, we’re not reliant on grants that can either come or go” she says.

 

Big Love 2026: Forty Years of Community, $209,000 Raised for YANA Families

Posted on March 9, 2026

For forty years, this community has done something extraordinary.

When a Comox Valley family hears the words, “You need to leave home to get the medical care your child needs,” this community answers with one word: yes.

Yes, we will help you get there.
Yes, we will make sure you have a place to stay.
Yes, we will make sure cost is not the thing that keeps you up at night.

That spirit was on full display at this year’s Big Love Benefit, where our community came together and raised a remarkable $209,000 for YANA families.

In YANA’s 40th anniversary year, that support carries special meaning.

For four decades, this organization has been powered by the quiet commitment of people who believe deeply in standing beside families when they need it most. Behind every YANA trip is a network of supporters who continue to show up with compassion, generosity, and care.

Big Love is a celebration of that spirit.

It’s volunteers who give their time, sponsors who invest in this work, bidders who raise their hands, and supporters who believe deeply that no family should face a child’s medical journey alone.

This year’s event included a joyful nod to 1986, the year YANA began. Big hair, bright neon, cassette tapes, and a whole lot of laughter filled the room as we celebrated forty years of YANA and the people who have made it possible.

To everyone who attended, volunteered, donated, sponsored, bid, and believed in YANA this year, please know how deeply grateful we are. Your kindness ensures that when a Comox Valley family needs to leave home for care, the care of home travels with them.

We dedicate the love, support, and celebration of Big Love 2026 to the memory of Jim Williams, whose quiet strength helped carry YANA, especially in its earliest days.

Sandra Williams was our founder, and her name is one YANA supporters everywhere know well. Like so many things in life, her work was made possible by someone who stood steadily beside her.

In a year where we celebrated forty years of community showing up for one another, it feels especially fitting to honour the behind-the-scenes dedication that helps something like YANA take root and grow.

Our deepest gratitude to Jim and to the entire community that continues to carry this work forward.

With Big Love,
The YANA Team 💖