In January of this year, the first Community Group Forum was held at the Municipal Centre.
This inaugural meeting brought together some 55 participants representing over 20 community groups. The purpose of this community-led initiative was to provide a venue for local activist groups to exchange ideas and information and discuss issues of common concern. All groups in attendance were committed to building a healthy, strong and inclusive community in our fast-growing municipality. It was agreed that this initiative was worthwhile and should continue.
To this end, a small secretariat has been established to help plan for the future and ensure that this idea does not fall by the wayside as so many attempts have in the past. The members of the secretariat are Cathy Ashby (House of Lazarus), Sarah Jane Manning (NG Pride), Geoff Gander (Royal Canadian Legion), Cora Bekins (Rotary Club), Brian Mc Kee (Kemptville Campus) and Marguerite Boyer (NG Times).
The Secretariat has met several times since the Forum and is pleased to announce that a second get-together of Forum members is in the works. This meeting will be held on March 6th at Parish Hall on the Kemptville Campus. Lasting two hours from 11:00 – 1:00, the topic of the forum will be ‘Volunteers’. This was an issue raised by many at our initial meeting. We have several experts in the field who will address issues such as the recruitment and retention of volunteers. A plenary session will be followed by a breakout into smaller discussion and information groups.
At the end of the meeting, we will announce some exciting and concrete opportunities for attendees to help with recruitment, training, screening and appreciation of volunteers. More on that later.
For more information, contact Brian McKee (bbrianmckee@gmail.com) or Marguerite Boyer (info@ngtimes.ca).