An Airdrie resident is using her fandom of the Ghostbusters to give back to the community.
Candace Schneider, co-founder of Calgary Ghostbusters, described the group as a “non-profit cosplay group,” meaning they “dress up like a character that you like,” she explained.
“We are huge fans of all things Ghostbusters – the movies, the cartoon, the comic book,” she said. “Basically we dress up in cosplay and we use that to do good for the community.”
The group volunteers on an informal basis, and has donated time to the Airdrie Food Bank, held blood donation drives, and raised funds for Tails to Tell Animal Rescue, the Alberta Children’s Hospital and the Make-A-Wish Foundation.
“We want to give back, because we’ve all been through something tough, and it’s nice to help people,” Schneider said.
Beside the volunteerism, Schneider said she finds the social aspect of the group particularly fulfilling. Many of the members go out for dinner or to the movies, Schneider said, and she’s made strong friendships both online and in real life that she likely wouldn’t have without the group.
“The thing about Ghostbusters is anybody can be one,” she said. “You don’t really have to be in the best shape, you don’t have to be a certain age. You can be a boy, you can be a girl – you don’t have to meet a certain look requirement as a Ghostbuster. You can be your own character.”
According to Schneider, the group started two years ago with a chance encounter.
“Basically, I met my boyfriend because he was at the mall dressed up as a Ghostbuster, and I had dressed up as a Ghostbuster for Halloween,” she said. “We decided that we wanted to meet more people that had common interests with us, so we started our group and we found a bunch of members.”
Beginning with three people, the group has grown to around 30 members, Schneider said. Most live in the Calgary area – five live in Airdrie – but some live as far away as Red Deer. Most members are in their 30s, she added, but others range in age from 16 to 50 years old.
Filming of a new Ghostbusters installment in Calgary, Beiseker and Crossfield has given Calgary Ghostbusters a bump in popularity of late, Schneider said.
“We found, definitely, some more people that want to be a part of it. We were lucky enough to be on set quite a bit. We actually sold patches to lots of the cast and crew of the movie, as well, ” she said, adding proceeds from the sales of the patches were donated to the Alberta Children’s Hospital.
Anyone interested in joining Calgary Ghostbusters can reach out through social media, such as its Facebook page, Schneider said, or simply show up to one of the events listed on that page.
“You don’t have to have a full uniform – you can show up in a Ghostbusters shirt and just hang out, help us volunteer for the day and see if you like it,” she said.
The Calgary Ghostbusters can be found Oct. 27 at Boo at the Creek, held from 1 to 4 p.m. at Nose Creek Park.
