Welcome to all our members new and old enjoying all that we have to offer. As I have previously recounted, we have grown tremendously in recent years both in number of members and complexity of operations. Treasurer Alison Kowalewski and I, as President, will be ending our terms after four and three years of service respectively, in March 2026. Going forward, it would be unreasonable to expect a volunteer board to have the expertise or ability to commit the time needed to orchestrate everyday operations and carry out strategic planning for such a large organization. The Board has voted unanimously to hire an Executive Director and plan to advertise the job posting in July with the aim of having the successful candidate in place by October. The successful candidate will need to be a person with a strong record of non-profit institution management but who also understand the needs and sensitivity of working with Seniors. The Board concluded that we are in a strong enough financial position to move forward with this hiring for an initial one-year period. Having an Executive Director will also facilitate effective fund-raising via grants, sponsorships and donation programs to help mitigate the cost of the position and to keep membership and activity fees as low as possible.
The Global TV coverage of our Centre and the Affordable Meal program had an incredible impact on the June 50/50 Jackpot, elevating it to a total of $14,075. If we can maintain or even increase this amount each month, we will be well placed to keep the prices low and service the demand for our frozen and in-house meals. With the increase in production of frozen meals we are running out of freezer space. However, the Sunshine Coast Credit Union (SSCU) has come to the rescue with a $5,000 Community grant to cover the cost of an industrial quality freezer. We applied on May 10th and were notified of the granting on June 23rd. We thank the SSCU for their tremendous commitment to the community.
The SSAC has the most important role of safeguarding the interests and serving the needs of our members. However, it is also important that we give attention to needs in the greater community. For instance, we have been able to assist Pender Harbour Better at Home this year by suppling a bi-weekly order of frozen meals. As well, in the last 3 weeks, we were able to supply the Sechelt Nation with frozen meals on an emergency basis until they can return to their usual food supply.
We had a wonderful Volunteer Appreciation lunch on Friday, June 27th. Emily, Jackie, Liz and their incredible volunteers produced an amazing buffet and were thanked by a well-deserved raucous round of applause at the end.
The Appreciation lunch is one of the most important dates in the calendar. The SSAC would not run without all our amazing volunteers. I particularly want to give a welcoming thank you to four members who have stepped up as much needed new dishwashers in response to the mid-month blast urgent appeal.
So many of our volunteers at the SSAC also volunteer their time at other organizations. In that vein, in addition to being our Manager of Operations and Engagement Gillian Smith is an avid community volunteer for Friends of the Sechelt Library, among other venues. So much so that she was one of this year’s Frances Wasserlein Community Leadership Award winners. It is awarded to a community member on the Sunshine Coast who has made significant leadership contributions as a volunteer to arts and/or cultural events in our community. Congratulations to Gill from all of us for this very deserving award.
We have had to make a slight adjustment in Front Office hours. The office will open at 9am as usual but will be closing at 2:45pm each day. As July comes upon us, I foresee a bright future for the SSAC as we continue to provide affordable stimulating physical activities and more cerebral activities, nutritious meals, opportunities for socialization in a welcoming environment and satisfying volunteer opportunities. Stay safe and have a great summer!
