SALMON ARM – Municipal workers from Salmon Arm, Enderby, Sicamous and the Columbia Shuswap Regional District are donating $5000 to local charities helping the communities cope with COVID-19. CUPE 1908, representing 179 workers in the Shuswap region, are making the donations to help community members most effected by the pandemic over the holiday season.
“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,” says Loreen Matousek, a worker for the Columbia Shuswap Regional District and president of CUPE 1908.
The donations will be $1,000 each to five area charities. They include the Safe Society, Shuswap Second Harvest, the Enderby and Salmon Arm Food Banks, and the Salmon Arm Salvation Army for programs directed to children and youths. The 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,” says Hugh Bennet, Vice-president of CUPE 1908 who spear-headed the Local’s support for the community turkey drive. “We are extremely proud to support these charities for the work they do year-round. But we also think it’s important that a few more families will be able to look forward to a traditional holiday turkey dinner.”
The Local made donations to these five charities earlier in 2020 and held food drives in each of the workplaces represented by CUPE 1908. Over 2020, Local members donated over $10,000.
“This has been an extremely challenging year for many in our community. From the volunteers working through the pandemic for our food banks, to the Salvation Army providing much needed assistance to young people, to the Safe Society helping keep women and children safe, I am truly overwhelmed by the way they’ve helped so many during this pandemic,” says Matousek. “I am very proud of CUPE 1908 members for their support of these groups and honored to be part of a union where members care so much about their community. We care about our communities, and about the people around us.”
CUPE 1908 represents municipal and regional district workers with the City of Enderby, City of Salmon Arm, District of Sicamous, Sicamous Recreation Centre, and the Columbia Shuswap Regional District.
