Municipal workers in the region are donating funds to assist non-profits who are helping their communities cope with the coronavirus pandemic.
CUPE 1908, representing 179 workers in the North Okanagan-Shuswap, are donating $5,ooo to help community members who have been most affected by the pandemic over the holiday season.
Those workers are with the City of Salmon Arm, the City of Enderby, the District of Sicamous, the Sicamous Recreation Centre and the Columbia Shuswap Regional District.
“Our members are acutely aware how difficult this pandemic has been on many in our communities. In the spirit of the season, we hope these donations can help our neighbours who’ve been struggling,” said Loreen Matousek, a worker with the Columbia Shuswap Regional District and president of CUPE 1908.
The donations will be $1,000 each to five regional charities.
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They include the SAFE Society, Shuswap Second Harvest, the Enderby and Salmon Arm food banks, and the Salvation Army in Salmon Arm for programs directed to children and youths. The union local also supported a community turkey drive for the holiday season.
“These charities do invaluable work for our communities and have been more important than ever during the pandemic,” said Hugh Bennet, vice-president of CUPE 1908, who spear-headed the local’s support for the community turkey drive.
The CUPE local made donations to the charities earlier in 2020 and also held food drives in the workplaces represented. Matousek said local members donated more than $10,000 in 2020.
She said she is overwhelmed by how much good work the non-profits do for the community, and she is also proud of CUPE 1908 members for their support of and caring for the community.
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