It's 2: 40 a.m., and we're praying the phone doesn't ring.
All night we have heard stories of a 2: 45 phone call from an Operation Red Nose dispatcher alerting the team to a ride from Richmond to Surrey or beyond.
Chances are we'd be too late for a transfer team and would be compelled to drive them all the way home.
After all, that's why they called in the first place. But we really didn't want to finish at 4 a.m., an hour past the end of our volunteer shift.
My son recently passed his driver's test and received his N, so now that he's on the road by himself, I felt compelled to do anything I could to make the roads a little safer. Volunteering for Operation Red Nose seemed like an obvious choice, so I called, completed a criminal record check and I was ready to go.
I was assigned to Rudy's team with Bob and Doug (no, not the Mackenzie brothers, I just don't want to use their real names!) Both are ardent volunteers. Bob is a Rotarian and this is Doug's fourth Christmas driving, as well as donning the Rudy suit to promote the service at staff parties, bars and pubs.
Our night begins at a staff party in Tsawwassen. It's early and they are in the middle of speeches. We make a quick visit, drop off a few flyers and make our exit. As we walk past the men's room, some poor guy opens the door, staring at a seven-foot reindeer. Bet he was wondering what was in his last drink!
We head off to another staff party in Richmond. They are having a bit more fun, and Rudy ends up on the dance floor. It's getting hot in the suit, so Doug signals it's time to leave (he can't see out of the suit very well). As we are leaving, it seems everyone with a camera wants a picture. Hey, it's Rudy, not Elvis!
Around 10: 30 p.m., we get our first call. We pick up a couple in Richmond and drive them to a transfer point at 64th Avenue and 120th Street. A team from Surrey meets us and takes the clients and their car the rest of the way home, safely.
As the evening progresses it gets busier, and the clients go from happily tipsy to more impaired.
Richmond to Tsawwassen. Tsawwassen to Ladner. Ladner to Surrey.
At midnight Doug decides to call his girlfriend. "Hi, Beautiful, you awake?" She is now. At least he called her Beautiful.
It's 2: 30 a.m., and we get the OK to head back to Ladner. We're praying the phone doesn't ring. Luckily it didn't, but if it had we knew we'd keep one more drunk driver off the streets.
It was a fun night, and I realized how valuable this service is to keeping the roads safe in our community, thanks to dozens of volunteers that give up a weekend night. Mind you, the night ends so late, they give up most of the next day, too.
It's worth it, during the holidays, to tuck a $20 and a Red Nose card into the wallet or purse of someone you care about, and you'll sleep a bit better knowing they'll get home safely.
