Hello Linden Ridge and Whyte Ridge,
Summer seemed to go by too fast! But I am so happy to say that the spraypad was used all summer by community members and has been a great addition to our outdoor space. Before I get into all the exciting news, I want to let everyone know that I’ll be stepping down as President in April at the next AGM. It’s time for someone with fresh ideas to come aboard. The role of President is not a hard one, especially as we now have staff to lighten the load. If you are interested, please email me at president@whyteridge.ca– I promise to be honest! The Board will need a President, so if you live in Whyte Ridge or Linden Ridge, and are interested, please reach out soon so that we can make the transition to a new President a smooth one.
Our Centre hosted 6 weeks of our very own summer camps and plenty of fun was had by campers and camp staff! Camp staff were hired through successful grant applications: we want to thank the Government of Canada Summer Jobs program and the Government of Manitoba Urban Green Team. We would like to thank all the Assistant Camp Counselors who volunteered their time as we really appreciate their help. We are looking forward to revamping this camp program for next year and are using the feedback that we have received from families to improve our program. Look for a whole new camp next year! RDT Soccer and Mad Science also offered summer camp programming at our Centre and we look forward to continuing these partnerships.
The WRCC Board continues to focus on revitalizing our community centre and we have a number of projects on the go. If you’ve been to the centre, you’ll notice that the bathrooms, kitchen, canteen, skate change area, and player boxes have all been renovated. We are so excited for the work to finally be complete and to be able to enjoy these fresh spaces. Thank you to the City of Winnipeg, Pembina Active Living, Government of Manitoba and Tire Stewardship for awarding us these funds through various grant programs. And have you tried our mini-donuts yet?
We were awarded nearly $100,000 through the City of Winnipeg Community Centre Renovation Spring 2023 Grant Program to retrofit our current outdoor rink light fixtures to LEDs in the fall of 2023. This is a greener option and we are so thankful to be awarded these funds. We were also awarded funds through the City of Winnipeg’s Home Grown grant program to plant and maintain 20 trees! These will be planted this fall along the walking path on the west side of the soccer pitch, the playground, and around the butterfly garden area. We also received $250,000 from the Government of Manitoba for improvements to our recreational spaces. This is a matching grant, meaning that we must now raise a matching $250,000. The new outdoor LEDs were part of this project meaning that we have raised nearly $100,000 thus far and are working hard on additional grants to continue improving our facilities and grounds. Stay tuned for community fundraising initiatives.
PAL 55+ is returning to our Centre beginning in September and will be offering programs for those aged 55+ out of the WRCC on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays. Please check their website at www.pal55plus.ca for further information.
Registration for fall sports is currently taking place so check www.whyteridge.ca for specific sport registration information. This includes hockey, soccer, basketball, etc. Don’t forget to check out the fall programs being offered at the WRCC which include Sportball, Ashtanga Yoga, Shotokan Karate, and Hatha Flow Yoga, with more classes being added all the time.
WRCC Board meetings will begin in September. These meetings are scheduled for the 2nd Monday of every month beginning at 7pm and we invite all community members to attend with ideas for our Centre or concerns.
Kimberley O’Hara
President