The Kiwanis Club of Oliver has just wrapped up its fiscal year on September 30.

This letter is to express the club’s sincere thanks to all the stakeholders involved in its primary fundraising effort, namely the Kiwanis People’s Market on Sawmill Road.

We must recognize the members and volunteers who spend so much time working there, members of the community who offer used goods to the market, and of course those in the community who support our endeavours by purchasing those donated goods.

Our club likes to say that we have a “win-win” situation – people have somewhere to donate their used goods, others can purchase those used goods, and the end result is that the Kiwanis Club is able to raise funds which can then be donated to worthy organizations and causes, both locally and elsewhere.

The Kiwanis motto is that we are “a global organization of volunteers dedicated to changing the world one child and one community at a time.”  Funds raised through the People’s Market are disseminated to different organizations, many of which have a positive effect on children and our community.

The Kiwanis Club of Oliver appreciates the support of everyone in the community – the members and volunteers, the donors of the used goods, and the public who support the market each and every week.  This fiscal year was the most successful year ever for the Kiwanis People’s Market. After payment of various obligations (i.e., provincial and federal taxes, overhead to run the market, and the running and maintenance of two trucks), we were able to donate a total of $127,692.00 to many worthy charitable causes.  Since we are often asked by members of the public where the money raised goes each year, the following is a breakdown of recipients and total amount donated to local and national/international causes:

Local organizations received a total of $113,576.00.  These include:  Desert Valley Hospice Society, Okanagan Gleaners, Kiwanis Housing Society, Oliver-Osoyoos Search and Rescue, Oliver Food Bank, Share the Spirit (Christmas gift parcels), South Okanagan Concert Society, Okanagan Similkameen Conservation Alliance (for Vaseux Lake Bird Observatory), Royal Canadian Legion, Farm to School Program at OES, Fine Arts Club at OES, Food for Thought (muffin program) at SOSS, scholarships and Bursaries for SOSS graduating students, Tuc-el-Nuit Elementary School swim program, Terrific Kids program at OES and Tuc-el-Nuit Elementary, Penticton Safety Village, Nothin’ But Net basketball camp at SOSS, Okanagan Boys and Girls Club, Books for Babies and Next Step program at the Oliver Health Centre, Drug Abuse Resistance Education program in Oliver elementary schools, junior curling, Oliver Ambassador Program, Oliver Boy Scouts, Penticton Kiwanis Music Festival, Oliver Arts Council Showcase of Talent, SOSS girls’ field hockey, McKinney Nordic Ski Club, Missoula Children’s Theatre at Tuc-el-Nuit Elementary, Oliver Handbell Ringers, Desert Sun Counselling & Resource Centre (for Better at Home program), SOSS boys’ basketball, The Painted Chair, Oliver Sunshine Festival, and Highway to Healing Society.

In addition, it should be noted that the Kiwanis Club was responsible for the purchase of all the equipment for the new outdoor exercise area in Lions Park, and was very proud to be able to donate $30,000 to the South Okanagan Similkameen Medical Foundation for the new tower at Penticton Regional Hospital.

Other organizations outside the local area received a total of $14,116.00.  These include:  Agur Lake Camp Society (Summerland), Pacific Northwest Children’s Cancer Society (to support cancer fellowships at BC Children’s Hospital), S.I.G.N. Fracture Care International, Richland, WA (to support fracture care in Third World countries), Saving Old Spectacles, The Eliminate Program (international Kiwanis program to eliminate maternal neonatal tetanus), Variety Club of BC (donation to support a Sunshine Coach), BC Professional Firefighters’ Association (to support a burn survivor for Burn Camp), Cops for Kids, Sleeping Children Around the World (purchase of bedkits in Third World countries), and the Salvation Army (for relief in the Fort McMurray wildfires).

A huge thank you to everyone in the community of Oliver and surrounding area who support the Kiwanis People’s Market in one way or another. Please know that whether you volunteer directly, donate used goods, or simply come to the market each week to spend your money, you are helping our club do great things in our community and elsewhere.

Kiwanis Club of Oliver