Category: Kinsmen Update

Shopping for the Christmas Index Program

Members of the Bible Hill Kinsmen grabbed shopping carts and ran around Wal-Mart in Truro on Tuesday night. Each year, the club supports the Christmas Index Program. In recent years, our efforts have slowly expanded to help more and more families in need during the holiday season.

It’s one of the projects club members look forward to the most each and every year. Not only is it a perfect opportunity to give back to the community, but it’s also a great night of fellowship with smiles and laughs all around.

As the day gets closer that we deliver the gifts to the selected families, we also ensure they have groceries as well. It’s just another way, along with the recent Teddy Bear Toss, that the Bible Hill Kinsmen are able to help people in our community.

Kinsmen Report: November

Hello everyone from the Bible Hill Kinsmen! It’s a busy time for everyone as we near the end of November, and we’re no different in that regard.

What a busy weekend we just had! We hope you enjoyed the hot chocolate served at the annual Christmas Tree Lighting at Truro’s Civic Square with help from the Sobeys on Prince Street. It’s always a big event in town, and the community shows up in a big way. Despite a bit of rain, we ended up handing out almost 1,300 cups of hot chocolate and the 500 candy canes went quick.

It was also nice to see Santa back in town the next day for his yearly visit. He looks as jolly as ever, despite the lack of snow.

The weekend prior, of course, was Remembrance Day. The turnout seems to grow each and every year, and a number of our members joined those in attendance. I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention the Milk for Britain documentary, released this year, which commemorates the 75th anniversary of the influential Milk for Britain Campaign during World War II. It brought Kin and Canadians together to help send over 50 million quarts of milk to Britain and raised $3 million (equivalent to $42 million today) to feed British children. The Milk for Britain campaign is a significant and inspirational piece of Canada’s, and Kin’s, history. The documentary can be found on the Bible Hill Kinsmen website: biblehillkinsmen.ca.

You may have spotted a few posters around the community claiming our club is preparing to hold a New Year’s Dance this year at Bible Hill Junior High School? We are! The dance will run New Year’s Eve from 9 p.m. until 1 a.m., with Big Dog 100.9’s Tyler Granter as the DJ. Tickets are $20 per person and you must be at least 19 years of age to attend. Contact any of our members or email newyearsdance@biblehillkinsmen.ca with any questions.

The Bible Hill Kinsmen are again partnering with the Truro Bearcats for the annual Teddy Bear Toss! On December 3rd, as Truro faces South Shore, bring a teddy bear in a plastic bag to toss onto the ice when the Bearcats score their first goal. It’s always a lot of fun. Our members will collect the teddy bears and they’ll be distributed through the Christmas Index Program.

We hold meetings on the first and third Thursday of the month, from September to June, at 7:30 p.m. at the Douglas Street Recreation Centre. We’d love to see you there. If you’re interested in joining us for a meeting, or would like more information, email president@biblehillkinsmen.ca.

James Faulkner is a member of the Bible Hill Kinsmen.

Ultimate NHL Road Trip Tickets

These tickets are only available in Atlantic Canada. The grand prize winner will see three NHL games, along with airfare and some spending money. What a great prize package! All members of the Bible Hill Kinsmen have tickets to sell. It’s a great stocking stuffer and a great cause, in support of Cystic Fibrosis Canada!

Kinsmen Report: October

Bible Hill Kinsmen President Peter Taylor, Paul Gillis, Brent Pettis, Ken Wynn, Geoff Hamlin, Truro Mayor Bill Mills, Stephen Hamlin, Mark Thibedeau, Perry Kohler, Perry Kienzle, John Spears (Photo credit: Babineau Photography)

Greetings from the Bible Hill Kinsmen!

Recently we had a cheque presentation to the Town of Truro. Our club is has made a five-year commitment totalling $25,000 to the Parks and Recreation Department in the Town of Truro. The funds will be used to upgrade the playground at Victoria Park.

The Kinsmen have a long and proud history of supporting Victoria Park, going back to the Truro Kinsmen Club. They put in the first outdoor pool there, as well as the Water Spray Park, canteen, and the Kinsmen Playground itself. The Bible Hill Club has since added one of the gazebos when the park was redone, and has continued the tradition of supporting one of the crown jewels of our region through the years. We can’t wait to see what our latest commitment will do to help enhance the park.

Our members also extend a thank you to the community for your generous donations to our Kindness Meters in Truro. We’re coming up on the first anniversary of their installation, and the funds go right back to the community. The three charities being supported through the meters at this time are ElderDog, the Salvation Army Community Café, and the Christmas Index Program.

The club is preparing to hold a New Year’s Dance this year at Bible Hill Junior High School. Despite some confusion from some of our members on what day it should be held, mark your calendar for December 31st. The dance will run from 9 p.m. until 1 a.m., with Big Dog 100.9’s Tyler Granter as the DJ (also a Kinsmen!). Tickets are $20 per person and stay tuned on when and where they can be purchased. It will be a lot of fun to ring in the New Year with you! Feel free to email newyearsdance@biblehillkinsmen.ca with any questions.

We hold meetings at 7:30 p.m. on the first and third Thursdays of the month from September through June . If you’re interested in attending at the Douglas Street Recreation Centre, or would like more information, email president@biblehillkinsmen.com.

James Faulkner is a member of the Bible Hill Kinsmen

Kinsmen Report: September

Hello again from the Bible Hill Kinsmen! We’d like to welcome you back into your school or work routine after a busy summer where we were proud to be a part of a number of celebrations and events in the community.

Going all the way back to July, the Kinsmen once again had a dunk tank set up during Canada Day in Bible Hill, where we collected donations for a number of charities in exchange for dunking a number of community leaders who generously donated their time. It was such a hot day that we’re sure they were chomping at the bit to let you dunk them so they could stay nice and cool. The celebration keeps getting bigger and better with each passing year, and hope that continues.

The Nova Scotia Provincial Exhibition marked a major milestone this year with its 70th anniversary. The revamped event was busier than ever, and you kept us busy in the Kinsmen Kanteen. There was rarely a slow moment for our volunteers, and we owe that all to you. Your continued support of one of our major fundraisers will ensure we can continue to follow our motto of “Serving the Community’s Greatest Need”. Money raised will be going right back into the Truro/Colchester County area through monetary donations to various charitable and non-profit organizations. The Kanteen will surely be busy again on September 30th and October 1st during the 39th Nova Scotia 4-H Show.

Giving back to the community where we live and raise our families is an important part of what we, as Kinsmen, do. Adding to that is the fellowship between our members. On that note, we’re holding a Buddy Night on October 6th. It’s a chance for people who have an interest in joining the Kinsmen to get a closer look at what it is we do. It’s our first meeting of the month and there’s a meal beforehand.

Even if you can’t make Buddy Night, we’d still love to have you at one of our meetings. They’re held the first and third Thursday of each month at 7:30pm at the Douglas Street Recreation Centre. If you’re interested in attending, or would like more information, email president@biblehillkinsmen.com.

James Faulkner is a member of the Bible Hill Kinsmen

District 7 Update: Kiniversaries

Hey everyone, this Kin Year we’re going to try to do some things differently, and that includes recognizing each of you and what you mean to our Kin family and your communities. Part of that will be celebrating our Kiniversaries. So starting with September (yes, I’m a bit late on the draw), let’s honour our fellow Kin celebrating with us this month. (For the record, we use dates and info from National)

Over 20 years in Kin this month
John Spears (Bible Hill, 20 years), Audie Newhook (Botwood, 36 years), Carla Murphy (Central PEI, 22 years), Rheal Sirois (Edmundston, 32 years), Carl Croucher (Fredericton, 46 years), Peter Kessels (Frederiction, 37 years), John Ross (Halifax, 20 years), Patsy Inkpen (Marystown, 31 years), Mary Power (Marystown, 24 years), Jackie Seely (Nashwaaksis, 22 years)

Over 10 years in Kin this month
Gary Delory (Antigonish, 17 years), Jeffrey Small (Bridgeport, 16 years), Dionne Bartlett (Bridgeport, 15 years), Peter Mullins (Charlottetown, 13 years), Kerry Harkness (Cheticamp, 11 years), Robert Oullette (Edmundston, 19 years), John Clair (Edmundston, 10 years), Maurice Pitre (Fredericton, 18 years), Mike Webster (Kentville & District, 12 years), Garland Andrews (La Scie, 13 years), Buddie Munn (Nashwaaksis, 16 years), Leanne Matthews (New Glasgow, 19 years)

Under 10 years in Kin this month
Geoff Hamlin (Bible Hill, 8 years), Palma Champoux (Bridgewater, 2 years), Greg McCourt (Charlottetown, 4 years), Derm Hayes (Corner Brook, 2 years), Ann Muxworthy (Florenceville, 8 years), Francis Reid (Glace Bay, 8 years), Mike Best (Goose-Happy Valley, 7 years), Jesse Pomeroy (Goose-Happy Valley, 4 years), Katie Edmondson (Nashwaaksis, 2 years), Glen Collier (Riverview, 2 years), Ron Greene (Riverview, 2 years), Brent Greer (Riverview, 2 years), Ernie Hunt (Sackville, 7 years), Ben Bishop (Sackville, 6 years), Kirk Elliott (St Anthony & Area, 2 years)

And a special thanks to our member(s) celebrating their first full year in Kin
Cavelle Clark (Goose-Happy Valley)

That is over 536 years of Serving Our Communities’ Greatest Need.

Stay tuned in the coming months for more Kin-iversary Celebrations, and other ways we look to share our successes.

Yours in Kin,
Quinn McCarthy (District Membership Director, member of the Kinsmen Club of Bible Hill)

Kinsmen Report: June

Hello everyone, from the Bible Hill Kinsmen!

The 1st Annual Colchester Book Fair ran earlier this month and exceeded our wildest expectations. We raised over $9,000 during the two-day sale, which will support the Colchester East Hants Library Foundation and other Kinsmen community projects. Thank you to everyone who volunteered to help, our Kinsmen committee who spear-headed the project, and especially to anyone who made a donation or showed up to find a few books and a bargain or two. We couldn’t have done it without all of you and can’t wait for next year.

The Kinsmen District Convention was held this month in Woodstock, New Brunswick. We had a handful of members who made the trip, which is a chance to meet more Kinsmen and Kinettes, swap ideas, and celebrate the past year.

The Kinsmen Club of Bible Hill was honoured with the Charlottetown Membership Award, which goes to the club showing the greatest net increase in membership year over year. We actually tied with the Witless Bay and Area Kinsmen Club, with a jump of four members. Membership growth has been a focal point for us over the past few years, bringing community-minded volunteers together to fulfill our mission statement: Serving Our Community’s Greatest Need.

Kinsmen member Quinn McCarthy finished his year as Communications Director for the District 7, which covers Atlantic Canada. The person replacing him is another of our members and past-presidents, Mark Thibedeau.

We’ll be back at the Bible Hill Rec Park for Canada Day manning a dunk tank, and look forward to seeing you all there for what’s a great place to celebrate our nation’s birthday.

The club is also gearing up for the Nova Scotia Provincial Exhibition in August, where we’ll be ready to sling burgers, fries, pizza and more from our Kinsmen Kanteen. We hope to see you there!

Our next meeting is in September. We gather at 7:30 p.m. at the Douglas Street Recreation Centre in Truro on the first and third Thursday of the month through to June. We’d love to see you there. If you’re interested in joining us for a meeting, or would like more information, send an email to president@biblehillkinsmen.ca.

James Faulkner is a member of the Bible Hill Kinsmen

2016-17 Kinsmen Executive Elections

The club recently held its elections for the 2016-17 kin year. The new executive is looking to hit the ground running when meetings resume in September from our summer break. Past-President Mark Thibedeau joined current President Drew Douglas to held conduct the proceedings. Nomination were taken at a pair of our meetings, including from the members at our last regular monthly meeting.

  • Life-member Peter Taylor was elected as President for a third time
  • Fernando Afonso was elected as Vice President
  • Henry Vissers was acclaimed as Secretary
  • James Faulkner was acclaimed as Bulletin Editor for a second consecutive year
  • Glen MacKenzie was acclaimed as Treasurer
  • Tyler Granter was elected as Registrar
  • Andrew St. Coeur was acclaimed as Risk Manager
  • Brian Babineau was acclaimed as Membership and Awards Director
  • Geoff Hamlin was elected as Communications Director
  • Drew Douglas will move to the position of Past-President

Congratulations to all the members of our new executive. They’ll be sworn into their new positions in early July.