At the Selkirk and District Community Foundation the words ‘Here for Good’ are more than a tag line, they’re a commitment that board and staff members take seriously.

And one thing they all know for sure is that it’s the kindness and dedication of folks like Jim and Betty Anne Gaynor that ensure ‘Here for Good’ rings true.

The Gaynors, who operated Gaynor Foods in Selkirk for 24 years, have been steadfast in their commitment to giving back to a community they never lived in, but consider a second home.

In 2018, Jim and Betty Anne, along with a silent partner, established the Gaynor Family Education Fund with a $750,000 donation. And last month, which was National Philanthropy Month, they topped it off with another $250,000 to make it a $1 Million fund.

Aaron Martyniw, Chairman of the SDCF, says it’s difficult to find words to express the gratitude he and the Board Members feel for the Gaynor family.

“Jim and Betty Anne have always been great friends of the Foundation and their compassion for this community is limitless,” Martyniw said. “Their latest donation will benefit young learners when the fund pays out in 2022, and will continue to provide opportunities as the years go by, and for that, we cannot thank them enough.”

The fund will assist Lord Selkirk Regional Comprehensive School graduates with financial support to pursue post secondary education. At least 17 scholarships and bursaries will be awarded. Jim and Betty Anne hold Selkirk near and dear to their hearts and are proud to be able to help young people further their education.

“We’re pleased to be in a position to assist people in the community that has been very kind to us for so many years,” Jim said.“We have a very deep appreciation for the community and the way we were received and supported over many years and we really feel good about the time we spent in business there. I still feel good about the community.”

Betty Anne called Selkirk “a wonderful community with really good people,” and said they’re pleased to be able to help ease the financial burden for students transitioning from high school to post secondary education.“It’s good for students to have funds to enable them to move forward after high school, and nice for them to know that there is funding available,” Betty Anne said.

The fund will pay out to students looking to pursue a wide range of post secondary options, including universities, colleges, academies, seminaries, institutes of technology, vocational schools, trade schools and other career colleges that award academic degrees or professional certifications.

The Gaynor Family Education fund compliments the Gaynor Family Fund, which supports local organizations that deliver youth and child focused programs.

For the first time ever, Get Better Together, a peer support program for people with chronic health conditions, will be offered online by the local health authority, along with a number of other health and wellness classes. All classes are free.

“In our new world of adjusting to living with COVID-19 and focusing on the Public Health fundamentals, we need to be able to still offer health programs and services, but in a way that is safe to doso,” said Shannon Montgomery Regional Director Public Health and Community Wellness. “We’ve had to change a number of the ways that we do things. We know there is still a need for these supports, but we also know that we need to offer them in a way that makes sense, both for the individual, and the community.”

“This fall marks the first time we have offered our programs on-line”, said Community Wellness Facilitator and Wellness Newsletter lead, Jan Keryluk. “We started in October with our Intro to Relaxation Series, which consisted of three 1 hour sessions on practical strategies for stress management, as well as another three session class called Intro to Exercise.”

In the New Year, there are more options lined up, including: Commit to Quit, a program to aid those looking for information and support in quitting or cutting down on tobacco use, Craving Change, a program to help understand why we eat the way we do and how to change unhealthy habits, and Get Better Together, a support program for people living with chronic health conditions. Each of these programs is offered once a week, for a set number of classes.

“I’m thrilled that we can now offer Get Better Together online,” said Caroline McIntosh, regional lead for the program. “Peer support is so helpful for people who cope with ongoing health conditions. Since we can’t meet in person, online is a great way offer classes. People get the support they need, while still being “COVID-careful.”

Classes are open to anyone to attend. All you need is a digital device (laptop, tablet or cell phone), internet, and an easy-to-download software program called, “MS Teams”. All classes are confidential; participants are asked to commit to being in a private room when participating in the program and to respect confidentiality with information that is shared in the group.

For more information on any of these programs, please go to https://is.gd/WellOnline. (Or go to www.ierha.ca and click on Care in Your Community / Community Wellness Team/ Free Classes).

Registering is easy. Call Toll Free 1-877-979-WELL (9355) or emailwellness@ierha.ca.

Contributor:Marilyn Sitar Community Wellness Facilitator. Phone: 204-348-7191 ext. 4240 / Email: msitar@ierha.ca

Submitted by City of Selkirk

Everyone knows that libraries are quiet places, where you can get comfy and delve into a good book or hunker down and ace that report for school.

But if you’ll indulge us a little and let us make some noise about the Gaynor Family Regional Library, you’ll see the value it has in this community and how, in the midst of a global pandemic, it has been the saving grace for many.

With the entire province mired in the Critical (Red) Response Level due to the COVID-19 virus, the Gaynor Family Regional Library continues to lend out approximately 250 books a day through its curb side service and eBooks. It’s also offering Zoom programming.

Selkirk Coun. Lorie Fiddler, the city’s representative on the library board, says she’s always impressed with the wonderful work of the library staff and is applauding them even more during COVID-19.

“I love how they morphed to meet community needs and still keep people safe,” Fiddler said.

“They’ve really thought things through and offered in the past curb side pickup when nobody was allowed in and of course now they’re back to offering that again. They’re ensuring people can still get books and materials from the library in a safe way. It’s fantastic and really important at this time.”

Fiddler praised the library’s community spirit as well, pointing out the Halloween display that people could view through the windows.

“That community engagement piece, they keep it going and I love that,” she said.

The library was like a port in a storm for students during the Restricted (Orange) Response Level, when a limited number of people were allowed inside.

“We were getting a lot more students than I expected,” said Ken Kuryliw, Director of Library Services.

“We were getting students studying here, because places for them to study are limited.”

The fact so many books are still going out daily during a pandemic is a pretty powerful indication of the library’s standing in the communities it serves.

But Kuryliw also points to its Return On Investment as a more rock solid indication that folks in these parts have a deep connection to their library.

“It’s quite amazing when you start looking at the numbers of each tax dollar and the return that we’re getting,” Kuryliw said.

“For example in 2019, the library ROI, just on the value of the items borrowed, not including children’s programming or senior’s services or all those things, was $6.5 million, just on the items that we loaned. The entire library budget during that time is under $800,000. For every dollar spent, the community gets $7 in direct value just on the value of the items that we borrow.”

When you factor in activities that take place in a typical year, like the children’s programming Kuryliw mentioned and the wildly popular senior’s programming, the ROI jumps up significantly.

“If you were to include all the other things, there’s some studies that show that libraries return about 10:1, you start looking that the factors like what’s the value of educating young learners and the long term value of that in terms of literacy, improved marks over a lifetime of learning,” he said.

The library is funded in three ways – 40 per cent from the Province of Manitoba, 45 per cent from the member municipalities (Selkirk, St. Andrews, St. Clements and Dunnottar) and the remaining 15 per cent is raised in the community.

If you live in one of those communities you can access the library for free. The Gaynor Family Regional Library also has a reciprocal agreement with the South Interlake Library, located in Stonewall, whereby residents of either library’s communities can use the other for free.

Anyone who lives outside those areas can pay a yearly fee of $75, and according to Kuryliw, there are those who do.

“There are people from Winnipeg that pay memberships to use our library because they like our library and they like the ability to get materials quicker.”

Kuryliw said they will continue to run ZOOM programming over the winter while restrictions are in place and they’ve started at Storytime group for three to five year-olds as well as virtual crafts, science and Lego challenges for the older kids. Members of the craft club pick up their supplies for their craft curb side at the library and participate through ZOOM.

The Halloween I-Spy was so popular they have planned a special Holiday Edition I-Spy that will be ready for Dec. 1.

For up to date information on services being offered throughout the pandemic, please visit www.gfrl.org.