President’s Blog

It has been a good year, culminating with the AGM, Jan 31, attended by 40 members. I like to think it is always a good year when you are a member of Vintage Characters. 

In 2025 our membership experienced an orderly increase from 137 to 160 members. 

This and That

Charitable donations continued, reaching almost $10,000 in total. A highlight of this activity occurred when we discovered a matching grant program that doubled any donation made to the Food Bank within a 2 week period. We made our donation within that period and voila, our $6,000 grant became $12,000! A reminder that members are able to make recommendations for organizations worthy of a donation. Details of this process are on our web site, under governance. Recommendations must be submitted by April 1.

We have introduced a few new policies in the past year. For an update on Vintage Characters policy changes please visit our website, under governance. 

Events, events events…We could talk about events for a long while but a few highlights of the year…..lawn bowling, CKUA tour and Leeroy Stagger concert, A Very Merry Xmas Winspear concert, a visit to Metis Crossing, an Elks football game, volunteering at the Food Bank and the Hope Mission, and many, many more. In the words of one member, Vintage Characters offers a variety of events that most members would not normally attend. These events allowed members to interact, mingle and share.  

• A footnote on events. Due to increased membership, the Board of Directors has shifted event planning from a single Event Director format to a 3 person event planning committee. The complexity of this work requires additional energy. 

Volunteerism and Hope Mission 

Our Food Bank volunteer activity has become very popular. Every 6-8 weeks, we have 20 Vintage members volunteering at the Food Bank warehouse. The success of this initiative prompted the Board to reflect on the potential of doing more. In August/2025, 2 Board members were given a tour of the Hope Mission and surroundings. The need of the area and population was clear. Following discussions with the Volunteer Coordinator of the Hope Mission, 2 opportunities for Hope volunteerism were identified. One, in an industrial area on Girard Road (sandwich making and bagging lunches for city wide delivery) and the other working at the downtown Hope Mission in the area of food delivery. 

To date we have had 2 volunteer sessions at Girard Rd and one downtown. I have hosted all 3 and would like to share some thoughts. Girard Rd is in an industrial area, easily accessible, pristine clean,  well managed, has adequate on site parking, and is staffed by friendly and helpful Hope employees. There are no concerns about safety.

Our inaugural volunteer session at the downtown Hope Mission went very well. Parking (3 hr) was plentiful. Time flew by and the kitchen staff were especially hospitable and supportive. Serving meals was fast paced and rewarding. Polite thank yous and warm smiles were commonplace from the clients being fed. It was rewarding and uplifting to serve so many hungry and appreciative people from the inner city. The line up seemed endless.  Mass feeding started at 10:30 and lasted until 11:40.There is no concern about safety. Most of our Vintage volunteers (8 of 9) attended our “coffee and a bite” gathering following our session. We visited the 104 Ave & 112 St Tims and parking was ample.   

The individuals who have volunteered at both locations have been very positive about their experience. All Hope volunteers are invited to a post Tims gathering for coffee and conversation   

I urge members to consider joining us at the Hope Mission and making a small contribution to improving the lives of our vulnerable population. We can make a difference.