Volunteers are pounding the snow- and ice-covered pavement as Heart Month continues in Yorkton.

“We’ve got around 55 people in town whoare actively canvassing the streets, knocking on the doors getting donations,” said Harry Ramsbottom, local coordinator of the Heart and Stroke Foundation (HSF) campaign, which runs until February 28.

Ramsbottom also acknowledged Boston Pizza. The local franchise is running its Hearts Campaign in concert HSF. People can make a donation at the restaurant and put a heart up on the wall. He said Boston Pizza had also supplied some nice prizes for the volunteers who raise the most amount of money.

Last week, Mayor Bob Maloney and Ramsbottom raised the Heart and Stroke Foundation flag at City Hall to promote awareness of the month long campaign. Council officially declared February Heart Month at its last regular meeting in January.

“Just the proclamation is important for [the foundation],” Maloney said.

“They do so much work, especially in education. There’s a lot of things that go on in relation to heart and stroke to make people aware of what the circumstances are.”

Despite great gains over the 60-year history of the HSF in reducing incidence of heart disease and stroke, one-in-three Canadians still die before the have to. In Saskatchewan approximately 23 people suffer a heart attack or stroke every day.

Maloney said virtually everyone has had someone they know suffer from these preventable conditions, including his own grandmother and mother.

“There’s a lot of effects in all of our communities,” he said.