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Generous donor gives playhouse to local kids

Playhouse goes to CASA
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Al Beddows

Fate is how the Sooke Harbourside Lionesses described the donation of a children’s playhouse to the Sooke Family Resource Society last Thursday.

The playhouse was originally gifted to the Harbourside Lionesses by an anonymous donor last spring.

“It’s just a labour of love. A group of people built it and they didn’t have kids, they just like building stuff (so) we got it,” said Al Beddows, district governor of the 19-I Lions Clubs International.

Georgia Medwedrich, president of the Harbourside Lionesses, said she wanted other Lions clubs in the district to have a chance at it, so a raffle was set up for Multiple District 19-I that encompasses all of Vancouver Island, the Gulf Islands and northwestern Washington.

Tickets were sold in all those areas, from Ladysmith to Tahsis, and it was a huge surprise when a winner was finally drawn.

“A Sooke guy wins it on one ticket, he only purchased one ticket. They were $2 each and 3 for $5,” said Medwedrich, still in disbelief.

Winner Paul Curtis, who has been living in Sooke for 34 years, said he wanted to give back  to the Sooke Child, Youth and Family Centre on Townsend Road. That is where the Sooke Co-operative Preschool is now located, and is where his children attended when it was at its old location by the ballpark.

“I just entered the raffle donating to the Lionesses. it worked out good for everyone,” he said.

The playhouse is to be stationed in the infant toddler playground and will be well utilized said Nicky Logins, executive director of the Sooke Family Resource Society which is one of the seven other agencies located at the centre.

Logins said the resource society will make the most use of it because of the many programs they offer for little children.

“It’s just wonderful, just a very generous gift,” said Logins. “It was totally unexpected—out of the blue we got a phone call and here it is, and it’s so pretty!”

Not to be outdone, The Sooke District Lionesses also made a donation to the society: a newly carved wooden picnic table made by an unnamed “local fellow,” said president Anne Scott.

CASA (Co-operative Association of Service Agencies) had wanted something for the children’s play area, so the Sooke Lionesses donated it,” she said.

“We said what can we do for you, they said we want a picnic table and it snowballed from there.”

 

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