2021 Community Investments
The COVID-19 pandemic continued to restrict our fundraising events and activities but we were determined to keep trying to find ways to support important local causes.
2021 Food & Toy Drive
For some years now, local community volunteer Coral Byrd has been partnering with West Quesnel Business Association to provide Christmas hampers to those in need, focusing on disadvantaged youth.
We supported the project last year to the tune of $1,500; this year...$2,000! But the community also weighed in - Coral received support from all manner of people and businesses; some were drop-off points, most were donors:
1862 Ceramics, Anytime Fitness, RBC Royal Bank, Integris Credit Union, North Cariboo Christian School, Wizards Garage, Telus/Andres, Westside Liquor Store, Pete’s Pies, AC&D Insurance, Attitude South, Vintage Car Club Quesnel Chapter, K-Max, Willis Harper Home Hardware...as well as some puzzles, games and craft kits,1236322 BC Ltd donated 41 jugs of laundry soap!
Supported by a small army of volunteers, Coral then coordinated collection of food and toys on December 20th and was able to help out over 60 families!
Lights for Lytton
On 30th June 2021, wildfire swept through Lytton, claiming two lives and destroying much of the village. The community of Lytton, though, is still very much active in the surrounding area and looking forward to eventually rebuilding.
Two Rivers Community Service Society (TRCSS) is a Lytton community group, one of whose activities is decorating certain spots in downtown Lytton for Christmas. Of course, all those lights and decorations were lost in the fire, too…and that got us thinking: “What can we do?”
Inspired by an amazing donation by Quesnel’s Canadian Tire, and knowing how Quesnel loves both a challenge and celebrating Christmas, our Club decided to coordinate the collection of cash donations to raise funds by 10th December to bring “Lights to Lytton”.
In spite of a catastrophic flooding event taking place in the Fraser Valley which, rightly, attracted aid and support for the washed-out communities, we were able to raise just over $1,000 in less than a month, and the folks in Lytton truly lit up their community!
Click here or the link in the menu for more pictures.
Meals for Seniors
When we saw the Observer article, we were immediately inspired to think “We can do something about that, too!”
Due to pandemic measures, we again won’t be able to make a Seniors Expedition to Barkerville this year, so we decided to reallocate part of the BC Gaming Grant funds designated to an Expedition to the “Meals For Seniors” program now run by North Cariboo Seniors’ Council.
At our lunchtime meeting of August 5th, President Bev presented NCSC coordinator Nicole Audet with our cheque for $1,000, enough to support the program for two months. NCSC a continues to look for support, but Nic says other local community support means the program is sustainable for at least another seven months.
In addition, Nic persuaded us to employ our, ahem, extensive catering experience to help prepare the Meals for at least one of our two months.
Unrelated fun fact: Nicole Audet is disturbingly persuasive!
Dunrovin gardens clean-up
As we re-emerged from the pandemic, our 2021-22 President Bev Haluschak decided we should get back in the groove by performing hands-on service projects.
Our first was on a +30 degree evening on 29th July tidying up the Dunrovin Park Lodge gardens and, in spite of the heat, it was a fun evening serving a useful purpose.
Quesnel Ambassador Leadership Program - Naylene Runge
We are proud to have Naylene Runge representing Rotary Club of Quesnel in this invaluable experience...and even prouder of her becoming Quesnel royalty!
To read about the Program, click here.
Naylene with her Rotary sponsor liaison, 2020-21 President-Elect Bev Haluschak
Quesnel Women's Resource Centre
Not all of our projects involve cheques, and that's how it was with what we did for Quesnel Women's Resource Centre to mark 2021 International Women's Day. For instance, for the month of March, AC&D Insurance kindly hosted a drop box for in-kind donations of items useful in the event of an emergency.
By the end of the month, we had a full tote, and Ravneet Sran, QWRC Administrative Coordinator, told us they also received a handful of cash donations.
Click on either image to enlarge
Survival Gardens Project
While our focus during the pandemic has been on our own community, we also look to support international projects.
In April, we sponsored a Survival Garden Kit for South Africa, containing
- Hippo water roller
- A shovel, rake and hoe
- Watering can
- Seeds and seedlings
- Compost, fertilizer
- How to Grow a Garden Guide
- Soap and sanitizer
- Face masks
Such a simple yet effective way to bring profound change.
Amata Transition House
Amata provides 24 hour support and temporary shelter to women and children who have experienced or are at risk of experiencing abuse.
Towards the end of last year, we made a donation to help fund the purchase of new linen - in-kind donations had more or less stopped because of the pandemic, but the need had not gone away. At the time of presenting our donation, we also committed to raising a further $1,000 through club members contributions known as "Happy Bucks".
Only meeting via Zoom has an impact on how quickly we can reach our Happy Bucks goals but we did so just in time to mark International Women's Day on 8th March 2021 - evidently it was meant to be.
2020-21 Club President Diane Rogers is pictured presenting our cheque to Amata Coordinator Rhonda Mercer...physically-distanced, of course!
Starfish Back Pack Program
The Starfish Pack Program started as a pilot project with 6 backpacks as a response to an Abbotsford teacher’s cry for help. She was feeding many of her Kindergarten students who were coming to school on Monday hungry. The hunger was affecting their moods and their ability to focus in class. This was not just an Abbotsford problem.
Many students across the province rely on school breakfast and lunch programs to fill their tummy’s on school days. When it comes to the weekend, they don’t have the food they need. Starfish Pack was designed to help change that. Starfish provides backpacks with 2 breakfasts, 2 lunches, 2 dinners, and snacks to hungry students each weekend of the school year.
In partnership with Riverview Elementary School, our program is coordinated by Quesnel Tillicum Society (QTS) with Rotary support. QTS selects a weekly menu, purchases the necessary ingredients (Save On Foods is another wonderful partner), and loads up the backpacks which are distributed to students to bring home on Fridays; the backpacks are then returned the following Monday.
With the assistance of a Rotary Foundation grant provided through our District, we donated $2,000 to help fund 10 back packs.
Quesnel Tillicum Society (QTS) is a registered charity, so tax receipts are available if you would like to donate either online (click here - please input “Backpack Program” in the message box) or by cash or cheque payable to "Quesnel Tillicum Society": 319 North Fraser Drive, Quesnel, BC V2J 1Y9
Image reproduced with the kind permission of Quesnel-Cariboo Observer
CDC and SD 28 Accessible Toy Library
Toys operated via switches and controls can be adapted or designed so that they can be operated and enjoyed by a child with special or complex needs. The benefits are numerous:
- playing with accessible toys supports communication development for children who may later require assistive devices to communicate;
- switch-play introduces children to skills they may require to access assistive devices to allow them a measure of living independence such as being able to turn lights on and off, and operate a TV;
- supports motor development such as hand-eye coordination and visual targeting;
- playing with accessible toys creates and builds self-esteem by allowing children to independently engage with their environment, and
- provides opportunities for social development by allowing children to engage in age-appropriate play with their peers.
* If you're not sure what any of this means, take a look at the pictures in the related Photo Album (left) or click here
As you might imagine, accessible toys are more expensive than so-called regular toys, and its that cost that generally puts the toys beyond the family reach. And then one day the magic began, when School District 28 Speech-Language Pathologist Lynne Dunn and Quesnel & District Child Development Centre Executive Director Lynn Mathiesen (a speech-language pathologist in her own right) realized they both had the same idea: why not create a lending library of these accessible toys?
We actually presented them with our cheque for $1,600 before they made a presentation at one of our club Zoom meetings, and while $1,600 doesn't stretch very far, it meant they were able to leverage that money to pursue other grants and funding for the same purpose.
President-Elect Bev Haluschak presents our cheque to Lynne Dunn, left, and Lynn Mathiesen
