After the floods, Stampede officials promised the show would go on come “Hell or High Water” and that proclamation rallied Albertans and launched a campaign that raised over $2 Million for flood relief.

“Supportive Calgarians and visitors encouraged us to host Stampede 101, come Hell or High Water,” said Bob Thompson, president and chairman of the board. “The desire to forge ahead with Stampede 101 was heard loud and clear from the community. “

The Calgary Stampede adopted the “Hell or High Water” slogan, put it on a T-shirt and launched a community funded campaign to support the Canadian Red Cross Alberta Flood Fund.

The official “Hell or High Water” T-shirt sold like hotcakes and on Monday officials presented a cheque for $2.1 Million to the Canadian Red Cross Alberta Flood Fund on behalf of the community.

“This was an unprecedented fundraising campaign for the Calgary Stampede,” said Vern Kimball, CEO of the Calgary Stampede. “We anticipated the campaign would be successful, however, we never anticipated presenting a cheque of this amount to the Canadian Red Cross. It is truly overwhelming.”

150,000 of the shirts were sold and the initiative was supported by a number of companies and individuals who donated their services, expertise and time to make the T-shirts and get them out to the public.

“The overwhelming support for the Calgary Stampede’s Hell or High Water campaign shows the spirit and tenacity of Albertans,” says Sue Phillips, Canadian Red Cross Director General for Western Canada. “For those affected by the floods, the road to recovery will be long. This generous donation received today from the Calgary Stampede will help Red Cross assist individuals, families and communities as they rebuild their lives from Alberta’s worst flooding disaster.”

So far, the Canadian Red Cross has handed out over 596,000 relief supplies, like, cleanup kits, first aid kits, hygiene items, water, towels, cots and blankets to those affected by the floods.