Tag: Kin Canada

Kinsmen Club of Bible Hill makes a historic donation

February 19th, 2020 – The Kinsmen Club of Bible Hill is marking 100 years of Kin Canada in a big way. Club members have decided to make two large pledges, one of them the largest single donation in the 45-year history of the local club

The first is a gift of $100,000 over 10 years to the Douglas Street Recreation Centre in Truro. The funding will be used to help with the creation of additional green space, playground equipment and renovations to make the space more inviting to the general public. The second donation is a pledge of $25,000 over five years for the Colchester Community Workshops Foundation for the expansion of the Workshops’ space at the former Halliday’s building, now called Delaney House.

“We wanted to do something big to mark 100 years of Kin and help the community as much as possible,” said Club President Quinn McCarthy. “The pledge to Douglas Street Recreation Centre will allow for renovations and upgrades that can be enjoyed by everyone in the local area. The commitment to the Workshops Foundation will ensure an important community organization is able to get the space it sorely needs to expand its programming. It’ll mean a lot of work for our 25 members, but we believe it will have a large impact. These donations match up perfectly with Kin Canada’s motto of ‘serving the community’s greatest need.’”

The cheque to CCWF will be presented on Friday, February 21st at 12 pm (168 Arthur Street in Truro). A cheque will then be presented to Douglas Street Recreation Centre (40 Douglas Street) at 1 pm, with a flag-raising to follow to mark 100 years of Kin Canada. All are invited to attend.

For more information, please contact:

Quinn McCarthy
President
Kinsmen Club of Bible Hill
(902) 890-6330

Kin 100 Community Challenge

Do you (or your kids) have a great idea to help our community? We will help you fund it! Plus, your project qualifies for an additional $2500 to build on its success!

Email president@biblehillkinsmen.ca for more information.

*Kin 100 Community Challenge is limited to children/youth up to 21 years of age*

Bible Hill Kinsmen honoured by Cystic Fibrosis Canada

Brittany Smith, Community Engagement Coordinator for the Atlantic Region with Cystic Fibrosis Canada, and Bible Hill Kinsmen President John Spears.

At our most recent meeting, Brittany Smith, Community Engagement Coordinator for the Atlantic Region with Cystic Fibrosis Canada, spoke with our club. Kin Canada is a proud national partner of Cystic Fibrosis Canada.  Smith presented Club President John Spears with a Certificate of Appreciation for our “outstanding dedication and commitment in the fight to end cystic fibrosis.”

Each year Kinsmen and Kinettes host a variety of fundraising and awareness-building activities in support of the battle against cystic fibrosis. Since 1964, Kin members have raised more than $45 million for cystic fibrosis research and patient care. The Kinsmen Club in Bible Hill supports this cause in a number of ways, including through the Powerplay Program with the Truro Bearcats. 

Another way our club supports Cystic Fibrosis Canada is through the Ultimate NHL Road. This is an annual fundraiser, and the grand prize will send you and a guest to three NHL games in three nights: Pittsburgh at Montreal on March 15th, Dallas at Ottawa on March 16th, and Montreal at Toronto on March 17th. Tickets are just $10, are only sold in Atlantic Canada, and just 9,000 have been printed! Contact us on Facebook or by email at info@biblehillkinsmen.ca.

2018 Truro MS Walk

The 2018 MS Walk in Truro is coming up this weekend and the Bible Hill Kinsmen will once again be involved on-site. The event runs on Saturday, May 27th at the Douglas Street Recreation Centre. Check-in time is at 10 a.m., with a start time of 11 a.m.

Dozens of people take part in this event each year, and thousands upon thousands of dollars raised for MS research happening right here in Canada.

National President Visit

Kin Canada National President James Doerr (front, fifth from left) is joined by members of the Kinsmen Club of Bible Hill at a meeting on May 4th.

Kin Canada National President James Doerr visited the Truro area on Thursday. After being shown some of the local sights by Kinsmen members, President Doerr attended a general meeting of the Kinsmen Club of Bible Hill.

A number of Kin from other areas, including Deputy Governors Al MacQuarrie and Ardith Cameron, also attended a meet and greet with President Doerr before the night’s meeting.

Victoria Park Kinsmen Playground Sign Unveiled

Left to right: Kinsmen Mark Thibedeau, Andrew St. Coeur, Quinn McCarthy, Truro Mayor Bill Mills, Kin Canada National President James Doerr, Kinsmen John Spears, Dave Gillis, Club President Peter Taylor (Photo: James Faulkner)

A sign was recently installed to recognize the Victoria Park Kinsmen Playground. Truro Mayor Bill Mills and Kin Canada National President James Doerr were on hand with a number of Kinsmen for an official unveiling on Thursday.

The Kinsmen Club of Bible Hill is in the middle of a five-year, $25,000 commitment for playground upgrades in Victoria Park. Kinsmen, both the club in Bible Hill and Truro before them, have long supported the park.

The play area was built in 1952 with swings and other equipment. Modern facilities, such as the swimming pool, were built in 1959 with the support of a number of local groups. The Dr. Jim Vibert Trail, dedicated after the prominent Truro surgeon, was established by the Kinsmen in the 1970s.

More recently, the playground and baseball diamond saw major upgrades in 1994 and 2000, when washrooms and new playground equipment was installed. That work was partly funded by the Truro Kinsmen. A joint effort between the Kinsmen and the town led to the addition of the water spray park.

It’s just one way the Kinsmen Club of Bible Hill is able to fulfill its motto of “Serving the Community’s Greatest Need”.

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!

Milk for Britain Documentary

Responding to a radio appeal for milk for British children, founder Hal Rogers rallied Kin members across Canada to raise funds for the purchase of powdered milk. The goal for the first year was to raise enough money to purchase one million quarts; within nine months, Kinsmen and Kinettes supplied more than three million quarts!

By the end of the Milk for Britain campaign, the Kin family raised close to $3 million and sent 50 million quarts of milk to Britain. Rogers was made an Officer of the Order of the British Empire in 1948 to recognize his efforts as the Chairman of Kinsmen’s Milk for Britain wartime project.

The wartime effort helped found 41 new Kinsmen clubs and the formation of a new women’s branch of the organization, Kinettes.

To mark the 75th anniversary of the campaign, members and clubs came together to ensure such an impactful and inspirational piece of history is documented.

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