Thompson Nicola Cariboo United Way

Calling all Volunteers!

Rotary Food Drive

Saturday, September 25^th

In support of the Kamloops Food Bank

Last year Kamloops donated over 43,000 pounds of food. Your help is needed to sort through the donations so that they can be brought back to the Food Bank for distribution. There is a job for everyone. It is a fun day for the whole family and a great way to give back to your community.

Volunteer Shifts start at 10am and are in 2 hour blocks – you can stay for as little or as long as you like. The day should end by 5pm

Sorting takes place at: Interior Vault located at 661 West Athabasca in the Mount Paul Industrial Area

Volunteers are needed to:

·       Write down food weights

·       Sort food donations

·       Label boxes

·       Loading truck

·       Organizing boxes

The day requires a lot of volunteers,

Please call Kari or Kyla at 250 376 2252 to sign up

PIT stop is a meal program run by Kamloops United Church.  Every Sunday evening a team of 12 make a hot meal for marginalized individuals and families.  For many, this is the only meal they will have all day. 

PIT stop is in need of teams and volunteers, especially for the summer months. The number of people using the program has increased 33% over last year including more families with small children.

Volunteer duties include planning, preparing, serving, and cleaning up after the meal.  For new teams training will be provided.

If you would like to organize a team or volunteer for PIT Stop please contact Diane Stuart.
Phone: 250 374-5196
Email: dianelstuart@shaw.ca

Nezar Alsalem is a TRU international student from Saudi Arabia and chose to volunteer at United Way through his SERV 100 class this past spring. He shares his story of his time with United Way:

In the first day; while I am in my way to volunteer, I was excited and nervous at the same time. The reason that I was excited is because I wanted to work as a volunteer in different environment from my culture. I was looking for the opportunity to be a volunteer in any place here in Kamloops. I am convinced that I would get many gains from this experience. In my country I worked as a volunteer, so this opportunity gave me the chance to know more about Canadian culture, and compare the way of volunteering experience between Saudi Arabia and Canada. I was confused, because it is my first time working in different environment. Also, I did not know how the way of working is and what kind of work I am going to do. Many questions came to my mind that made me feel confused about the work. All I had to do at that time is to be Patient and optimistic, and I will know what will happen when I go to the work. When I was evolved in the work with United Way, all the expectation that I placed it before in my mind became clear. When I went to United Way, the people there who I worked with were friendly and very nice. While I was doing my work, they were always asking me if I need any help, and appreciate me because I am helping them; I felt comfortable while I was part of them.

I had a very wonderful experience when I was volunteering with United Way. When they see me working as a volunteer they feel really happy, and that encourages me to work and go to the organization every time; because I feel that being with them is a great service to the community. The wonderful thing when I was working as a volunteer with United Way that every time I go there, I have a new work; which is something I like it to not feel bored of doing one job. Another thing is every time I go there, I learn new thing. One of the best works I liked while I was volunteering in United Way is group work. At the first two weeks I worked with a girl her name is Erica, and she was there also working as volunteer. One of the great things of working with a partner is you can make friendship and that what I did with Erica, and she is really a very kind person. One of the great things that I like while I was volunteering with United Way is serving a dinner for homeless. The event was in United Church, and we made a complete meal contain a salad, chilli and sweet. In that day, we served around 95 people. I was not expected that we are going to serve this number of people. It was really something meaningful to help people who need food. The most thing that I liked on this event was our team work, and how we were organized of doing everything from the first and until we cleaned everything. I am so proud of being a part of the community how helps people.

 Volunteering with United Way was a great experience. I learned many things and I made friends who try to help the people and community to be in better condition. It is really nice to be one of the people who try to help the community on way or another. Sensation that you are one of the persons who help the poor and needy people is something meaningful and makes me feel happy to be a part of the community who want to make a difference to a good way.

To conclude, I really got many benefits from working with United Way, and I will not forget many things from this great experience. I will still working with them as a volunteer because it is not just about the course; it is about the community and helping people.

The following article about Thompson Nicola Cariboo United Way’s Day of Caring program was in today’s edition (May 31st) of the Kamloops Daily News.

Volunteer efforts work
wonders at the food bank

The grass behind the Kamloops Food Bank and Outreach Society’s house on Wilson Street is mowed and the parking lot weeded. New flowers have been planted and a coat of stain has been applied to a flight of stairs.

 Kyla Cain, the society’s volunteer co-ordinator, and the rest of the food bank’s staff have the United Way’s Day of Caring to thank for the work.

“It was May 15 and the lawn hadn’t been mowed yet. It was up to my knees,” said Cain. “It looks just great over there now.”

She said volunteers from a nearby high school and local organizations helped out on three separate occasions, each undertaking a different project.

On April 13, staff from the Ministry of Tourism sorted donations from a recent food drive and made hampers. Two weeks later, 14 students from NorKam secondary did a variety of tasks, including making hampers, weeding the parking lot and organizing a trailer on site.

The Kamloops and District Labour Council stopped by May 15 and did a bunch of spring-cleaning, planting $100 worth of flowers and tidying the society’s yard.

Cain said the volunteers also ripped down old shelves in the warehouse and replaced them with new ones. “Once the groups get here, even with the kids that age, they just work their butts off,” said Cain.

About 90 per cent of the society’s staff members are volunteers. Cain said summer is a time when many become busy with their lives outside of the food bank and it’s difficult to get projects completed. The Day of Caring makes all the difference. “It’s huge for us,” she said. The experience is equally important to those doing the work. Cassy Ivey, a Grade 11 student at NorKam who volunteered her time earlier this month, said a friend in the peer helper program asked if she wanted to take part.

“It was actually really, really fun. We learned a lot,” she said.

Cassy said she organized a long-neglected tool shed and cleaned and itemized a trailer the society uses to distribute hampers.

“I organized the desserts corner, which looked really, really good,” she said.

The students worked for more than half a day, but the time passed quickly. Cassy had so much fun that she would like to volunteer again, either at the food bank or somewhere else in the city.

“It was really good to be helping out in the community and knowing that we were giving something back,” she said.

The food bank’s story is one Adrienne Gordon, community development co-ordinator for the Thompson Nicola Cariboo United Way, hears often. She said participating in the Day of Caring promotes a better understanding of community issues.

Volunteers learn about a non-profit group they might never have known about before. The nonprofit gets some much-needed assistance and increased exposure, said Gordon. “It’s such an amazing experience,” she said. The United Way introduced Day of Caring in 2002, with the Thompson Nicola Cariboo arm picking up the campaign in 2005.

Eight projects were completed that year. Last year saw 40 projects benefit 35 non-profits. Gordon said 14 Day of Caring events have been completed this year, with more to come.

She said the youth component has become a big part of Day of Caring. Last year 30 students from two schools took on projects. Seven schools have done work for six agencies this year.

Gordon said engaging people in volunteerism at a young age increases the chance of them being active in the community later on. “They are receptive. They want to help,” she said. Domtar, NRI Distribution and Spectra Energy are among the local businesses that participate in Day of Caring. Gordon said the events encourage teamwork among employees.

“When you’re sitting at your desk all day, you don’t get the chance to know you’re co-workers that well,” she said. “When you’re standing side by side painting a fence, you do.”

To me, United Way is more than just somewhere I volunteer my time. I am truly rewarded and gain perspective every time I am involved in a United Way event.

My association with Thompson Nicola Cariboo United Way started six years ago when I joined my colleagues at a Day of Caring event. At that time, I had no clear vision of United Way or of the impact they had on our community. But the Days of Caring taught me. It all began with a community garden revitalization project in Brock, then a Christmas in July dinner at the ASK Wellness Centre, a spruce-up of the BC SPCA building and grounds, and, most recently, a poignant day of gardening and interaction with the women of the House of Ruth. Through these events, I have learned how every dollar the United Way works hard to raise is put back into the community to work hard for those in need.

Two years ago, I was asked to sit on the Campaign Cabinet as Co-Chair of the Finance Division. I jumped at the challenge. The role of a cabinet member is to engage the people in his or her networks and encourage them to give back to their communities, partly through workplace campaigns. United Way supports these campaigns by arranging speakers from community partners to talk about the work they do and how United Way funds make a real impact on their members. Every year, people in the Thompson, Nicola, and Cariboo communities amaze me with their generosity, and this past year was a perfect example. After repeated business closures and lay-offs at local mills, I knew that we would all have to dig really deep to achieve our fundraising goal. At the campaign wrap-up in early December, a large group of community members gathered in anticipation of the total. I am very proud to say that we surpassed the previous year’s total and are able to continue funding those in the community with the greatest need. Moments like these remind me why I give both time and money to my community.

Many people wonder what happens after the annual fundraising campaign is finished. Where does the money go and how does it get to those most deserving? This question leads me to my most recent United Way experience. For the past two years I have been invited to work through the allocation process, in which the Board of Directors and select community members assess applications and interview people from organizations in Kamloops and Merritt that are looking to secure United Way funds. One thing I have noticed is that the requests for funding always exceed the amount of money available. Those involved in the allocation process constantly struggle to ensure that essential community services are not without the means to continue their good work. While I realize how generous our community truly is, I understand how much more we still need to give. My involvement in this allocation process has brought me full circle with United Way.

Being introduced to many of our community groups and their needs has enhanced my awareness and made me more passionate about making our community better. This is what enabled me, in this past year, to educate and engage my peers at Canadian Western Bank in our first United Way workplace campaign. I am immensely grateful for what United Way has shared with me and given to the community I call home.

A member of Thompson Nicola Cariboo United Way’s Youth Engagement Councilis moving West.  Erica Gardham has been a part of the Youth Engagement Council for 2 years.  She also spends time each week volunteering at the United Way office.  In 4 months Erica will be moving to Camosun College on a scholarship to play basketball for the Chargers.  She will be dearly missed by the staff at United Way but we are proud of her and wish her all the best! 

The following article is from the Kamloops Daily News regarding Erika’s scholarship.

For that, she thanks the TRU WolfPack’s two coaches.

Gardham played guard for the Brocklehurst Broncs last season, and has committed to joining the Chargers in the fall. The Chargers play in the B.C. Colleges Athletic Association, which is a step below the CIS, in which the WolfPack plays.

Chargers head coach Brett Westcott expressed an interested in Gardham after Chuck Ferguson, assistant coach of the WolfPack women’s team, called up. Along with an endorsement from Scott Reeves, the WolfPack’s head coach, Gardham earned an invitation to join Camosun, which is based in Victoria.

“Chuck Ferguson, he knew Brett, and so did Scott Reeves,” says Gardham. “They knew about (Westcott) and knew about me as well, because they’ve both coached me. They told Brett that if he’s interested, there’s a guard in Kamloops.”

Apparently Westcott was interested — he got in touch with Gardham and invited her to an identification camp on April 17. She went, and apparently did quite well.

“I didn’t really have high expectations, I just wanted to go in there and do my best,” Gardham says.

Gardham, who has a 3.9 Grade-Point Average, plans to take the university transfer science program, with hopes of ending up in the University of Victoria’s bachelor of science program after two years.

Ferguson, who coached Gardham at Brock when she was in Grade 8, and more recently with the Kamloops Basketball Academy, says Gardham deserves everything she gets.

“Great kid — you won’t meet a harder worker, a nicer kid if you tried,” says Ferguson. “When she played for me (at Brock), we were short of players a lot, but we could always count on her to go the extra mile for us.”

Gardham has been in constant contact with Westcott, who has been the BCCAA women’s basketball coach of the year for the last three seasons.

Gardham is excited to play for such a respected man.

“Having a good coach makes the whole year,” Gardham says, adding that they already have talked about her role with the team. “The email he sent me said I’ll be a guard and a defender. He hasn’t told me anything about minutes or anything like that.”

In the meantime, Gardham is continuing to play soccer for the Kamloops Blaze U18A team, as well as for the Broncs senior girls team.

As for basketball, she picked it up at Happyvale Elementary, and continued to play it at George Hilliard and at Brock.

She officially got serious about it in Grade 9 — she liked the fast pace — but didn’t think that it would turn into a collegiate opportunity.

“No I did not. Not at all,” she says, with a laugh.

“I had a good year — I got quite a few tournament all-stars, and I went to the Okanagan all-star game at UBC-O in March.”

At 5-foot-6, Gardham isn’t the biggest guard in the world, but says that she doesn’t look “abnormally small” beside Camosun’s tall players.

And because adding height is sort of out of the question at this point in her life, Gardham is working on strength, hitting the gym two or three times a week. She figures to get there more often once school is done.

“I have my own training program,” she says. “I need to work on my body strength and they said I should work on my ball-handling — it’s not bad, but it could always be better.”

It’s only four short months until Gardham heads west.

“I’m nervous, but I’m more excited,” she says.

United Way Hosts the PIT Stop on Sunday, May 2^nd – Volunteers needed!

A group of youth around the City of Kamloops will cook a hot dinner for over 130 people Sunday, May 2^nd at Kamloops United Church as part of their PIT Stop program. If you are interested, please e-mail youth@unitedwaytnc.ca . This is an opportunity for youth to give back to the community while spending quality time with other youth and gaining work experience and volunteer hours. It is also a great way to celebrate BC Youth Week – May 1^st – 7^th!

P.I.T. Stop, (People in Transition), is a free community meal program. It operates year round, every Sunday afternoon from Kamloops United Church since 2002. In addition to support from KUC, PIT Stop is in partnership with the City of Kamloops, receiving a Social Planning Grant each year to aid in purchasing food and supplies. They also belong to the Kamloops Food Share program which collects almost-expired food from local grocery stores.

Currently, each week they are serving 100 to 180, largely street-involved people but also those who are housed but find it hard to make ends meet with rising shelter costs. Individuals receive a healthy, hearty, usually hot meal, in an open, accepting atmosphere. Everyone is welcome to come for dinner between 3:30 and 4:15 pm.

Some quotes from other youth who participated:

“It was just so interesting to see that we have the same needs and desires as they do.”

“Some people I would never have expected to see there, they looked just like us.”

“Events like this really make you realize that we are all people with the needs in life. We all want to feel loved and accepted.”

“The United Way has the coolest programs; they do so much to help out people in the community.”

“It’s amazing how a couple of hours can change your life in such a positive way”

“A big thanks to the United Way, I had so much fun!”

“I only hope that we can have more opportunities like this”

Committee Appointments

City Council is seeking applications from City of Kamloops’ residents who are interested in serving on a voluntary basis for a three (3) year term (2010/2011/2012) for the following:

SOCIAL PLANNING COUNCIL

Information on the Terms of Reference for the Social Planning Council can be found on the City’s website at http://www.kamloops.ca/socialplan/index.shtml

For specific information relating to an appointment to the Social Planning Council, please contact the staff liaison:

Jennifer Casorso 250-828-3758

jcasorso@kamloops.ca

Please submit a brief resume with a covering letter outlining your background and interest in the area, by

Monday, March 8, 2010

to:

Bobbie Harrison

City of Kamloops

7 Victoria Street West

Kamloops, BC V2C 1A2

bharrison@kamloops.ca  or fax 250 828-3578