Three Mile 60 Park volunteers recently received the Manitoba Liquor & Lotteries Community Changemakers Award for their dedication to the park.
Doris Tremorin, Henri Tremorin and Larry Tarko were this year’s recipients of the award, which promotes group volunteerism in Manitoba and recognizes an outstanding community group that has dedicated its time and resources to giving back to Manitobans. The award was one of many presented at the 41st annual Volunteer Manitoba Volunteer Awards on May 1.
The Tremorins and Tarko have been volunteering with Mile 60 Park in St. Claude since its creation 23 years ago. Their recent work in succession planning prompted other park volunteers to nominate the three for the award. In April 2023, Doris, Henri and Larry called a meeting to recruit new board members — and a dozen locals showed up, ready to pitch in.
“We were at a point where we felt we were getting stale as far as how to continue to develop the park and improve on what had already been done,” said Doris. “We said we need new people, younger people, the next generation, to see what they think and feel is needed in the park.”
The trio came to the meeting with a list of everything they do in a typical season — opening the bathrooms, cutting the grass, working with the municipality and local urban district, hiring Green Team members, opening the campground, running the concession and more. They told the new members they would stay on the board to mentor them, guiding them through what’s needed to keep the park running smoothly.
“We wanted to show them how we do things, what we expected of ourselves to ensure the park was in good condition to be used every year,” said Doris. “We asked if they’d be interested in joining and trying to make sure the park isn’t lost. To work for 20 years and see it go to waste was not something we were willing to do — and they were all on board. It was not something anyone was willing to lose.”
The three continued to show up for every work day — cleaning and opening the park for the season, planting new trees, checking that pole shed additions were functioning properly, closing the park, winterizing equipment and more. They attended every meeting, including those for the park’s recent expansion project.
Since forming the new park board, the group has completed a second set of bathrooms and expanded the campground, adding 10 full-service sites with electrical, plumbing and water, for a total of 16 serviced and 20 overall sites. They raised more than $83,000 in community donations to fund the project — and every penny came willingly from local residents.
“We know this park is not going to be lost,” said Doris. “You don’t do this alone. As much as we got recognized for this, the community deserves the award. This is an award for the village of St. Claude, not just the three of us.”
Doris, Henri and Larry were shocked to learn they’d been nominated — and even more surprised to win. Doris called it “humbling” to be recognized for their work, especially at a ceremony where so many dignitaries were in the room. The event featured a cocktail hour, multi-course meal, awards presentations, and plenty of conversation and laughter.
