Meredith Boerchers is the newest member of the Selkirk & District Community Foundation team and immediately, her enthusiasm for her new role as Community Development Officer was evident.
“I’m excited, it’s only my second day, but everything so far has been great,” Boerchers said.
Indeed, Boerchers hit the ground running, meeting co-workers and board members and learning more about the Foundation’s role in St. Clements, St. Andrews and Selkirk – the three communities it serves.
But her knowledge of the Foundation was already solid, having gained a good understanding of it during her previous position at the St. Andrews Heritage Centre, where she worked for three years.
“I was exposed to the Foundation right at the outset of getting involved with the St. Andrews community. They were already part of my introduction to the world of St. Andrews, Selkirk and St. Clements,” Boerchers said
“Working at the Heritage Centre, I loved it, and one of the things I loved most was getting to know the community, both individuals and other organizations…this non-profit world is small, and a lot of the organizations that will be applying for grants, I expect that I’ll have crossed paths with them and I look forward to working with them again.”
Boerchers will be responsible for the Foundation’s Community Grant Program and its upcoming Vital Signs Report, a follow up to the first, released in 2018.
Chair Shauna Curtin says Boerchers is a good fit for the Foundation.
“We’re very excited to welcome Meredith aboard and join our exceptional staff team of Bev Clegg, Eileen Janowski and Carole Wiedemann,” Curtin said.
“She’s very quickly become part of the team and her enthusiasm for community is evident. As the Foundation grows so too does our team and Meredith is the perfect fit for Community Development Officer.”
Originally from the small town of Laurier, located near Dauphin, Boerchers graduated from the University of Manitoba with a Bachelor of Music and then headed to Ottawa and Carlton University where she earned her Masters in Arts, Music and Culture and a diploma in Curatorial studies.
Her studies in music and culture, perhaps somewhat surprisingly, have prepared her well for her new position, she says, and upcoming work on the Foundation’s next Vital Signs Report.
“I feel like there’s a lot of synergy in the way that we’re thinking about community, all the different lenses that make up wellness and a community’s health,” she said.
“Even though I was looking at those things through the lens of music, talking to Bev and the others at the Foundation I feel like there’s a lot of similarity in recognizing that community health comes in many forms.”
Clegg is excited to have Boerchers working with the smart and caring crew at the Foundation.
“We are all thrilled to have Meredith as the newest team member at the Foundation. Her sense of community and interest in the well-being of all who make up a community makes her the perfect fit,” Clegg said.
“She will be working closely with community groups and organizations in the grant program and will take the lead on the Vital Signs project. We are excited for those who don’t already know her to get to know her and connect with her as she works with the Foundation to ensure we are here for good.”
Boerchers started working at the Heritage Centre in 2020, and said she quickly felt an affinity for her new adopted home.
“I was getting to know the community and was establishing, without me really knowing it, a connection to the area,” she said.
“I grew attached to the area and the people.”
She loved her work at the Heritage Centre and found that it made her discover things about herself and pointed her towards her new job at the Foundation.
“I love history, that’s another passion of mine, and working at the Heritage Centre, they put a lot of emphasis on community programs…and that is where I found I was finding the most value in my work and found myself asking, ‘How’s what I’m doing here serving our neighbours? How is it contributing to our culture and the vitality of the community? Are we bringing joy? Are we bringing wellness?’ History is great but you need to make it applicable,” she said.
“I felt more so that my interest was in contributing to the vitality of the community.”
We welcome Meredith Boerchers to the Selkirk & District Community Foundation.
Submitted by Selkirk & District Community Foundation
