Rocanville Thrift Store makes waves with $20,000 pool donation!

October 21, 2024, 9:32 am
Nicole Taylor

Volunteers with the Rocanville Thrift Store presented $20,000 to Rocanville Recreation for the pool refurbishment project last week. The building committee hopes to have the new pool complete by next spring.

The Rocanville Thrift Store has made a significant impact on the local community by donating $20,000 to the Rocanville Recreation Board for the refurbishment of the town’s swimming pool. This contribution is part of the Thrift Store’s commitment to supporting various local initiatives, with an annual donation total of approximately $60,000.

Steve Fortney of the building committee, said he is hopeful about having the pool ready by April, right in time for Spring lessons.

Steve Fortney of the building committee.

Initially, plans included preserving sections of the original pool; however, a thorough inspection revealed that many parts of the pool were beyond repair and had to be demolished.

As a result, only the original water tank will be retained in the new building, paving the way for a modern facility that meets the community’s needs.

As the Rocanville Recreation Department seeks to improve community facilities, the importance of sustained financial support from local donors, sponsors and volunteers cannot be overstated.

“We are just a small part of the incredible team of volunteers at the Thrift Store that make this success possible.” says Lynda Bock, one of the volunteers there to present the cheque Thursday.

“It takes a lot of hard work and dedication to support local projects like this. We are truly grateful and fortunate to have such an amazing support system and all the fantastic volunteers working behind the scenes.”

Construction on the refurbished Rocanville Pool.

While contributions are always greatly appreciated, the board has seen a slow down in donations recently, and is hoping to create greater awareness and involvement in funding local projects like the swimming pool renovation.

The volunteers are hoping that people seeing the donation in the newspaper will be inspired to give.

They noted that after the last photo of a donation from the Thrift Store in the paper, customers were more generous, because they saw the good that was being done.

“The last time I worked at the Thrift Store after we had our picture in the paper, there were a lot of people who would buy $5 worth of stuff and give you a $20 bill and say keep the change because they see that we’re helping,” said Bock.

Nicole Taylor and Kevin Weedmark photos