April 26, 2012
Councillor Eli El-Chantiry
110 Laurier Avenue W
Ottawa, ON K1P 1J1
RE: Sponsorship - Ottawa Police Dragon Boat Club
I am writing on behalf of the Ottawa Police Dragon Boat Club to request the financial support of the Police Services Board. This financial support would help pay for the team registration fee associated with our participation in the “Washington DC Dragon Boat Festival” race, to be held in Washington DC on May 19 and 20, 2012. The registration fee for this event is $1000.00 US and we are seeking $1000.00 CAN from the Board to help off set the event’s registration fee.
In 2006, we were able to attend this festival with your financial support. The Blue Dragons competed in the Premier Mixed Division as well as in the Capital Cities Challenge. We placed third in the 250m Premier Mixed Division and second in the 500m Premier Mixed Division. The biggest crowd pleaser of the event was the Capital Cities Challenge. In both the 250m and 500m event Ottawa Canada came in second place to Taipei Taiwan, with Washington D.C. of the United States coming in third. The Ottawa Police Blue Dragons were the only Canadian Team and I can proudly say that we served our Country and Capital City with honour. By the end of the two-day event we had the majority of the American crowd screaming and cheering our team on. Many people commented on how friendly, outgoing and fun the Canadians were.
As in previous seasons, all costs associated with travel, accommodations and incidentals for all of our race events are covered by individual members and through the teams fundraising efforts. Ottawa Police members paddle in events and attend practices (twice weekly) off duty and do not receive lieu time / compensation for their efforts.
The Ottawa Police Dragon Boat Club was established in 1998 as a way for members of the Ottawa Police Service to participate in the Ottawa Dragon Boat Festival and increase the Service’s community involvement. The team has grown both in membership and in the number of festivals we participate in each year. Our team has also become readily identified at races throughout Ontario and Quebec as representing the City of Ottawa.
We would like to thank you again, for your continued support and we appreciate your consideration of this request. If you require additional information please do no hesitate to contact me.