Adam Prudhomme
Editor
Members of 100+ Women Who Care Lennox and Addington gathered outside the L&A County Courthouse on Sept. 15 to make a bittersweet donation.
Though they were gifting the Mazinaw Lake Swim Program with $6,900, it was also their final donation. Earlier this month the board announced they had made the difficult decision to disband.
“Right now we feel like that we are going to close this chapter of 100 Women Who Care Lennox and Addington, but one door closes, another will open,” said Amy Mack of the 100+ Women Who Care L&A. “I can’t sit idle for very long so something will be opening, it just won’t be 100 Women. Our numbers since COVID has gone done a lot. Before COVID our donations were up to $14,000, now they’re down to just under $7,000. We’ve lost a huge core of our membership and that’s due to the economy, I don’t think there’s any other reason.”
In its heyday, the group would hold quarterly meetings with over 100 members in attendance. During those meetings members would have a chance to advocate for an organization they felt should be the next recipient of their donated funds. Members would then vote, with one lucky charitable organization selected.
Since their inception in June 2016 they donated to 21 organizations.
“We started eight years ago, we lost about nine meetings because of COVID, but in that time we donated over $225,000 to charities, which range from Mazinaw to Morningstar Mission,” said Mack.
Beth Hassler and Mary Kelly were on hand from the Mazinaw Lake Swim Program to accept the cheque, which will help cover their operating costs for the season.
The swim program provides a Red Cross and Bronze training course from the Lifesaving Society, offering local youth and cottagers the opportunity to learn water safety. Held at Bon Echo Park, it is the only swim program of its kind hosted in a provincial park.
The program was founded following the tragic drowning of two youths with the idea that swimming in a lake in much different than that of a pool. The program is sustained by user fees, donations and grants. For more information, email Mazinawswimprogram@gmail.com.