Foundation in good hands with new Executive Director Meredith Boerchers
After a career of giving back to the community and being the driving force behind many of the community changing endeavours of the Selkirk & District Community Foundation(SDCF), Executive Director Bev Clegg has decided to give retirement a shot.
Clegg also made a large donation to the SDCF herself
In recognition of everything that she’s done for the community, a retirement celebration took place on Dec. 3.
The event started with a bit of social time in the Gaynor Family Regional library before the evening’s presentations started.
Clegg had no idea who was going to speak as SDCF kept all the details to themselves until the last minute.
Deborah Vitt, the current chair of SDCF, started off the presentation.
“For those of you who are keeping track, Bev’s been with the SDCF for 20 years. That’s 10 years after the Foundation was incorporated, and the Foundation has come a long way since then,” said Vitt.
After some touching comments that were sent in from Clegg’s family as well as former Foundation members, Vitt spoke about how Clegg loves more than just the Foundation, she also loves the community.
“I’ve heard over and over again from past chairs and friends of the Foundation that Bev has deep roots in the community, that she embodies community spirit and that values matter just as much as paying attention to donors and stakeholders, because Bev is a leader in this community,” said Vitt.
She then turned the microphone over the Shirley Muir who has known Clegg since 2002 as they met when Muir was on the communications committee for the Western Canadian Summer Games.
“I had never been involved in a large sporting event like that before, and I really had a lot to learn, and Bev had a very deep understanding of sport and athleticism,” said Muir.
She explained that Clegg was knowledgable and wanted to make the games a memorable experience for all who participated. From that experience working together, Muir walked away thinking that Clegg was amazing.
And, amazing was certainly the word of the evening for Clegg.
The next time that Clegg and Muir’s paths crossed it was Clegg who came to Muir’s home for a chat.
“I knew they were coming to see if I would sit on the board of the Foundation, and I assured my family that was not going to happen. Nope, that was not going to happen. But Bev spoke with such passion about the Foundation and what it meant to the community and how important it was that somehow, before they left, I was on the board of the Foundation,” said Muir.
She explained that even when she thought she was done on the SDCF’s board, the Foundation and Clegg were something she kept coming back to.
“Some of us get excited about how much money is in the bank of the Foundation, how many grants we can give out, and while those things are important, Bev really glows, she’s full of joy, when she sees that children have a new play structure. And, I’ve been with Bev when she visits a seniors room, where the room has been repainted thanks to a Foundation grant, or when she’s on a boat in what I would describe as frigid conditions on Lake Winnipeg, watching researchers tap the water so they can do testing to make sure that Lake Winnipeg is clean for next generation. And, that kind of joy rubs off on you. She’s always looking for it and I think we’ve all learned to do that, look for the beauty and the gratitude of these really small things that happen. And, that’s another reason why I think Bev is amazing!” said Muir.
Ken Kuryliw the Director of Library Services for the Gaynor Family Regional Library came up next. He talked about how Clegg not only keeps the SDCF going but looks out for the community.
When Kuryliw first came to Selkirk in 2007, the municipalities hadn’t even agreed on a location for the new library but he took the chance on the community anyway thanks to Clegg.
“The Foundation was just starting to explode and grow. And she made me feel like, yes, this is a community that we can build it together. There’re leaders in this community. We can get them together and build this wonderful community space and library,” he said.
Clegg’s work getting everyone from the municipalities, to the Gaynors, and the Rotary Club to the table helped create what Kuryliw is sure is the best library in rural Manitoba by far.
She also continued to support the library after it got off the ground.
“When I needed a grant to support children’s programming, Bev said, ‘Send the application in. We’ll back it up.’ When we needed children’s computers. Bev said, ‘The Foundation will be there.’,” he said.
Then, during the pandemic when the library was having to go through a large adjustment period, learning how best to serve patrons with so many changes, Clegg again helped out.
The Federal government had grant opportunities available but, because libraries are not considered by the federal government to be a federal responsibility, when Kuryliw looked into getting access to the grant opportunity he didn’t think there was a way to make it happen.
“The next day the phone rings, ‘Hi, It’s Bev. Ken, how would you like access to the Federal COVID program?’,” he said.
With help from the Foundation, they were able to upgrade the wi-fi in the library and throughout the parking lot. This meant when people couldn’t access the library, they could still come by and stay safely in their cars and access digital services. Even now, when the library is closed the parking lot wi-fi is still available to those who need it.
Up to the present, the library is currently in their final fundraising push to raise the last few thousand dollars for their chidren’s section expansion. The Foundation has given them $100,000 and the Gaynor Family has agreed to match donations up to $300,000 to get the last needed funds in the bank. That donation marching is still ongoing.
“It’s amazing what this community does together, and it’s thanks, in large part for me, thanks to Bev’s early leadership (that it all happens),” he said.
The final guest speaker for the evening was Gord Henrikson former board member and chair of the SDCF.
He first met her as an acquaintance and then he got to know Clegg and her husband Ron better as friends. When the Cleggs co-chaired the Selkirk venue of the 2007 World Women’s Hockey Championship, Clegg asked him to co-chair the volunteer committee.
“They did a great job leading our local team, and did an excellent job representing and showcasing Selkirk with lots of serious work and some quick thinking troubleshooting that led to positive outcomes. They also made sure we had a lot of fun,” he said.
Clegg then reached out again a few years later asking if he would be interested in joining the grant committee as a non-board member.
“To say that she was committed to and passionate about the Foundation would be an understatement,” said Henrikson.
He explained that Clegg’s deep understanding of the Foundation and constantly working to implement the next steps that the Foundation needed kept the SDCF growing.
“Bev’s work has had an incredible impact on the community, and her community includes all of us, the donors, the grant recipients, the board members, our partners, her peers and her friends. I believe that she was able to do this because this job truly became a dream job for her. She grew with the Foundation, and she believes strongly in the work that we all do together. We are very thankful for that,” said Henrikson.
The final speaker of the night was Clegg herself who spoke about her time at the SDCF from her part-time beginnings to how the Foundation has grown and thrived into the force for good it is now.
“Gail called me up wanted to meet and talk about the Foundation. At that point in my life, we had three small children. We were in the early school years, just like Foundation. A short conversation led to Gail offering me the position of the Executive Director, a very, very part time position, but I knew the Foundation, just like Jim and Betty Anne (Gaynor) mentioned, it could and would grow to help the whole community. So, without much knowledge of the Foundation, I said, Yes, I knew it was the perfect fit for me and our young family. That was in 2005,” said Clegg.
She explained that a lot has changed in 20 years.
Clegg went through the contributions of each Chair of the SDCF. They all gave back with their leadership styles and she was there to see the growth happen.
“The community was beginning to trust the Foundation more and more you could see it and feel it in the weekly donations and the community minded donors creating individual funds,” she explained.
Now, the Foundation has two full-time and a part-time employee and has 75 different funds.
“We are a provincially and nationally recognized Community Foundation with local leaders coming and going from those boards. We are a key community leader within the municipal nonprofit sector, while continuing to gain and nurture trusted relationships with community-minded folks from all walks of life, from near and far,” said Clegg.
She explained that it was about four years ago that she started to joke with the board that she was here for good but not here forever and that a time of change was approaching.
Before she wrapped it all up, she wanted to thank the board members she’s worked with over the years and the staff members she’s worked with.
She also wanted to let everyone know that the SDCF is in good hands with new Executive Director Meredith Boerchers.
“Meredith is fulfilling the role fabulously she is smart and caring, thoughtful. Meredith is another trust factor with the Foundations team and another right person at the right time,” said Clegg.
She ended by saying that she can’t wait to see what the next 30 years looks like.
Residents are reminded that some of Clegg’s favourite funds at the SDCF are the Western Canada Summer Games Legacy Fund, the SDCF Scholarship Fund, and the SDCF Administrative Fund (Buhr Family Initiative) so if you would like to celebrate Clegg’s retirement with a donation those would be a great way to give back.
Vitt ended with a big thank you for Clegg.
“On behalf of all of us, here we thank you for all your years of dedicated service. Your impact will be felt for many years to come,” siad Vitt.
