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UPDATE: Fit for the Future Capital Campaign 

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At this point, as Campaign Chair I would like to extend special expressions of thanks to persons whose efforts have made the Fit for the Future campaign a genuine success.

Through the combined efforts of volunteers, donors, rural municipalities and the provincial government, in the span of less than 3 years we raised $300,000 in donations and pledges.  This leveraged matching funding from the provincial government for two projects: paving the hockey rink, and equipment for a fitness facility.

The combined value of these projects is $500,000.  $400,000 to pave the rink, and $100,000 in fitness facility equipment.

The Beaches Community Centre owns these assets, and revenues from them contributes to the ongoing operating budget and viability of our community centre.

 

Nothing would have happened without the donors.  83 people and companies donated a total of $266,000 to the campaign.  First and foremost, I would like to thank and congratulate them for their vision in supporting the campaign.

Two people are primarily responsible for reaching these donors: Gary Wingate and John Heppenstall. Nobody knows how much these two people contribute not only to this project, but to the community overall.  Without their efforts, the hockey rink would still be filled with sand and covered with weeds in the summer, and there would be no fitness facility.

Other contributors who merit special recognition:

Rumona Dickson.  In addition to her contribution to writing the grant applications, Rumona almost single-handedly willed the fitness facility into existence.  She refused to give up when it seemed that we could not find a location.

Claudia Schlamp.  Claudia served as Project Coordinator for the fundraising and grant-writing phase of the project, and did an outstanding job of keeping everything organized, on track and on time.

Jascha Boge.  Jascha served in several important ways.  He created the RFQ that enabled us to choose a contractor for the rink paving project, and was a leader on the Steering Committee that guided several projects.  Jascha also played a key role in setting up the agreement with the Social Scene.

Kevin Allan.  Not only was Kevin a primary contributor to the Steering Committee, he also lent his expertise in project management, serving as Project Manager for the rink paving project.  Kevin was onsite every day of construction, making sure things stayed on track.  Ultimately the project came in on time and within budget.

Greg Daniels.  Greg generously shared his knowledge gained from the successful grant application for the repaving of the tennis courts.  Frankly, we simply used the template he provided us to get the grant that paid for half of the total cost of the Fit for the Future projects.  Greg was also instrumental in the selection and acquisition of the basketball equipment.

Randy Thomas.  Randy was President of the BCC when the concept of the project was brought forward.  Without Randy’s encouragement the project would never have happened, so I thank him for his encouragement and support.

Rob Fiola.  I can’t pinpoint one single thing that Rob contributed to the success of the project: he has been involved in everything, from sitting on the Steering Committee, to spearheading the construction of a walkway, to the rink to painting the player’s box, to organizing the pickleball tournament.  If you want to get something done, get Rob involved.

Fred Schlamp.  It was one thing to get a workable surface for ice on the rink in the winter.  It was Fred who rolled his sleeves up, organized a crew of volunteers, and was out on the rink on cold winter days, making sure we had top-notch ice.  Many thanks to Fred.

Roger Langlais.  Not many people would recognize Roger’s name, but he was as important as anybody with respect to getting the project approved for provincial grants.  He is the Regional Manager of the Community Development Branch of Municipal and Northern Relations for the province of Manitoba.  He provided us with the framework for the application and guidance throughout.  He provided public service as it should be provided.

Brad Patzer.  Brad succeeded Randy as BCC President and has provided excellent support and leadership over the past year.  We owe Brad thanks for his contribution to the success of the project as well.

 

There are many others, including my colleagues on the Beaches Community Centre Board of Directors (especially Laurie Danwich) who should be recognized for their support and efforts. Likewise the Councils of the Rural Municipalities of Alexander and Victoria Beach, who were there for us when we needed them.

The Beaches Pickleball Club has done a fine job of organizing the use of the rink facility, as well as the indoor courts, and will continue to do so moving forward. 

Likewise Murray Otter has done a great job managing the Fitness Facility.

My apologies for the many other strong contributors who I have not specifically named. 

Next Steps:

So what lies ahead?  We have reached a pause point, with the balance of donations being put into an 18 month GIC, until we define next steps.

Starting in the spring of 2025, the BCC is launching a strategic planning process. This process will start with a comprehensive survey of the membership, intended to identify priorities and opportunities for the Board to consider.  The survey will wrap up later in the summer.

In the fall of 2025 the Board will work on the Strategic Plan, which will be a unified blueprint for the organization moving forward.

Thank you to everybody who had a hand in this tremendously successful project.

 

Bill Hurtig

Campaign Chair.  April 2025

 

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If you have questions on the above content, please contact: 

Bill Hurtig:  bill.hurtig@hotmail.com

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