BY DUCK PATERSON
An organization with a 115-year history in Ladysmith continues to support the health and well-being of community members.
On Feb. 8, the Ladysmith Health Care Auxiliary held its annual general meeting at the Eagles Hall, with more than 50 members in attendance.
“Everything the auxiliary does is because of all the volunteers we have,” said president Eithne Reichert at the meeting. “Over 100 years of service from this dedicated group of volunteers have made great things happen in this wonderful community.”
She also highlighted support from residents, including people who bring donations to the thrift store or shop there, allowing volunteers to “recycle, reuse and repurpose their surplus items to provide funds for our community and health care.”
Due to the store’s strong monthly sales and financial stability, the auxiliary was able to make a $225,000 lump-sum payment on its mortgage last winter and hopes to be mortgage-free within the next year and a half.
On top of knocking down the mortgage on the thrift store, the auxiliary was also able to make considerable donations to health care and related causes in the area. In 2023 the work of the volunteers realized $267,000 in donations to more than 20 groups including $25,000 to both the Cowichan and District and the Nanaimo and District Hospital Foundations. Other significant donations were also made to the Ladysmith Resources Centre Association ($30,000), Ladysmith Family and Friends ($20,000), B.C. Cancer Foundation ($30,000), Ladysmith Secondary School ($19,000) and many other organizations.
Reichert said the auxiliary is budgeting to donate even more in 2024.
Some of the successful programs, besides the thrift store, that the auxiliary volunteers perform are the baby layettes, which are collections of clothes for newborns. The auxiliary gave out 80 layettes in 2023 with most of the items made by auxiliary members. The auxiliary members also do all the maintenance at the gardens and landscaping at the thrift store and the Doris Gallagher Memorial Gardens at the Ladysmith Community Health Centre, with more than 400 combined volunteer hours at the two gardens. The Lifeline Silent Guardian program also saw an increase in usage in 2023, and the Meals-On-Wheels program had more than 10 drivers who contributed nearly 200 volunteer hours. Those volunteers also delivered flowers on Valentine’s Day along with Christmas stockings and Christmas meals.
All told, auxiliary volunteers tallied more than 50,000 hours of community service in 2023.