Access Credit Union has partnered with the Lakeshore Regional Wellness Commission (LRWC) on Ashern’s new wellness centre.
With a $50,000 donation, Access Credit Union is the newest sponsor for the Ashern Wellness Centre, which opened its top floor earlier this month. As part of the sponsorship, Access gets naming rights to the studio on the centre’s upper level, called the Access Credit Union Studio.
After obtaining a temporary use permit for the upper level of the new centre, the Lakeshore Regional Wellness Commission (LRWC) opened the newly renovated top floor on Oct. 3 for the first time.
The new wellness centre is where the Ashern curling rink used to be, renovated and developed into a multifunctional centre for the community. The upstairs has been completely refinished and has a new bathroom, a walking track, and more.
The new wellness centre is also accessible and offers a shuffleboard court upstairs, which was the first thing to be used in the centre when a local seniors’ group came in on Thursday, Oct. 3. LRWC had coffee and snacks available for those who came to the soft opening. LRWC vice president Scott Cameron said the quiet event had a good turnout.
“At least now we can get them in and get using it,” he said. “It’s just a really good way for them to get moving, get active, be social, be together, and have conversations. It’s a really exciting time for them because they have been patiently waiting. We were trying to get them in during construction but couldn’t. We’ve all been looking forward to this.”
The Access Credit Union Studio will be used for yoga, dance, meditation, and more. Shuffleboard will also take place in the studio until the field house is ready to open. LRWC Scott Cameron said the partnership will support the group’s efforts by providing both funding and support.
“It is a very important partnership for us because it will provide a large amount of the resources needed to get the entire facility operational,” said Cameron. “Access Credit Union has always been a huge supporter of our small communities in general, so to have their support on this project means everything to our team.”
Access Chief Marketing Officer Adam Monteith said their Community Investment Advisory Committee “identified the significant interest from the community, not just in Ashern, but in the surrounding area, for a multi-use, multi-generational facility.”
“In conversation with LRWC, we saw the need and identified that we could play a part in assisting the community in achieving their goals,” he said. “The wellness centre will serve the diverse needs of their community, which aligns with our vision to build capacity in our communities, to allow more people to participate and to improve their physical and mental wellbeing.”
The Ashern Wellness Centre is 85 percent complete on the first phase of construction. The basement is being finished and should be open to the public soon. The completely renovated area includes the meeting room, change rooms, bathrooms, showers, and lockers. A boiler system is also being installed in the basement, which will be used to run in-floor heating for the field house level.
After that, Cameron said LRWC would turn their attention to the field house and prepare that space for public use. Currently, they’re working on an accessible entry for that level and are completing the construction of a bathroom there.
Cameron said they anticipate the facility to be fully operational no later than the spring of 2025, but they expect the basement level to be open much sooner. The upstairs of the facility will remain open from now on.
“Once we are fully operational, the LRWC will continue the efforts in creating a state-of-the-art wellness facility,” he said. “There will be many upgrades and improvements necessary going forward, so we are always looking for additional partnerships with those that are able to help.”
