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The lingering effects of recent snowstorms haven’t stopped volunteers from driving Island cancer patients to their treatment appointments, Transportation and Infrastructure Renewal Minister Robert Vessey says.

“Using their own vehicles, volunteers have joined together to provide free rides to clients from across Prince Edward Island,” Minister Vessey said. “This group of local heroes deserves our gratitude, both for their safe driving in less-than-ideal conditions and for their selflessness in caring for their fellow Islanders.”

Since the PEI Cancer Services Volunteer Driving Project (PEICSVDP) began in May 2013, drivers have made 600 trips to help clients access chemotherapy and radiation therapy at the province’s Cancer Treatment Centre in Charlottetown and chemotherapy at Prince County Hospital in Summerside and Kings County Memorial Hospital in Montague. The project uses a rotation of 83 drivers who are dispatched when needed by a coordinator in Prince, Queens and Kings counties.

In addition, the project provides free gas cards to help Islanders get to their own treatments and to volunteer drivers who need to offset the cost of their gas. Thanks entirely to donations from groups and individuals, $1,200 in gas cards have been distributed since the project began.

The province supports the project by waiving its $25 fee for drivers to obtain their driver abstract, which is required to register as a volunteer driver since it lists the driver’s record and proves that his or her driver’s licence is valid. This saved the project at least $2,075 in potential fees for the current slate of drivers.

“We are thankful to the province for removing what would have been a significant financial burden on our new organization,” said Paul Aitken, president of the PEICSVDP and himself a volunteer driver. “We have also been very happy with the response from service clubs throughout the Island in the form of monetary support and volunteers, but we can always use more of both.”

To get involved with the PEI Cancer Services Volunteer Driving Project, visit them on Facebook or e-mail peicsvdp@gmail.com, or donations and gas cards can be mailed to PEICSVDP Inc., PO Box 20028, Sherwood, Charlottetown PE C1A 9E3.