Some Crossfield residents are proving that having a potty mouth isn’t a bad thing – especially when every swear word results in a donation to a local charity initiative.
For the second year in a row, Crossfield resident Liz Grace organized the Merry Bleeping Christmas swear jar campaign to raise money for the Crossfield Fire Department’s annual hamper program. As part of the campaign, Grace and the rest of her potty-mouthed pals contributed change to their swear jars every time they uttered a naughty word in November.
“It seemed like a ridiculous idea, so we figured, why not?” Grace said.
According to Grace, the initial motivation for starting the campaign last year stemmed from the frustration she and her friends felt with the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 – a time when they all let fly a few more swear words than usual.
And swear they did, with last year’s inaugural campaign raising $1,495 for the hamper program.
“2020 was just like one of those years where just everything was kind of getting worse and worse,” she said, adding it was a no-brainer to bring the initiative back this November.
“I feel like I had lots of swearing left in me, but so did everyone else, too.”
While Santa Claus may have to put Grace and her friends on the naughty list this Christmas for their repeated use of foul language, she said just because the group raised more than $2,000 doesn’t mean they collectively swore 2,000 times. She joked that this year, she included a special promo that meant participants were able to swear as much and as often as they liked.
After 30 days of no-holds-barred cussing, Grace said the group raised $2,190 this November, with $1,200 going to support Crossfield’s hamper program and $800 set aside for the Airdrie Food Bank.
She added another person contributed $102, which will support Inn From the Cold.
“Last year it was jars, and it was mostly change, and there was a lot of change-rolling,” she said. “I made a joke at the start of this one that there was a $100 all-you-can-swear special available. So I mostly just got increments of $100.”
Given the success of the initiative over the last two years, Grace said she could see it becoming an annual campaign in Crossfield. She added the need to support the hamper program is always there, and the swear jar campaign is a good way to remind the community about it.
“It's way more fun to donate in sort of a fun way, and then you feel a little less guilty about swearing a lot,” she said.
—With files from Carmen Cundy/Rocky View Weekly
