Shop with long community heritage expanding

September 7, 2016

Community Care North Hastings (CCNH) is reaching out to recognize its many volunteers and it’s expanding social enterprise the Heritage Shoppe.

“We’re just in the process of evolving and growing and shifting and seeing,” said CCNH executive director Heather Inwood-Montrose. “From children to youth, to adults, to seniors, to people with disabilities – it doesn’t matter what walk of life they are from. Everybody is welcome and everybody shops there [from] locals [to] cottagers. Everybody comes in. I think people really like that they can access goods that they need at an extremely reasonable price.”

The Heritage Shoppe, and other CCNH enterprises such as the Coe Hill Thrift Shop help offset costs of community programs like the CCNH hosted $2 square dancing classes that started up Wednesday Sept. 7 at the Bancroft Railway Station.

“Community Care North Hastings has been in our community since 1981. It started as programs and services like meals on wheels,” explained Inwood-Montrose.

Today, the Heritage Shoppe has become a pillar of the community. It is managed by local resident Maureen Hall, Lorna Brownlee, Sue Malloy and Cindy Dunstan. Donations of gently used items from blankets and clothes to power tools are dropped off nightly. Recently, passersby have mistaken goods that were dropped off after close as donations that were free for the taking.

“We wish that that wouldn’t happen because if people need they are welcome to come in and ask us, and we will give it away. Otherwise people are taking away by doing that, for the funds to go back into the community.”

Community participation and countless volunteer hours have packed the shop to its capacity, encouraging its growth. The CCNH has a database of 150 volunteers between all of its programs and services. All proceeds and work go back into community programming.

“It’s not that we’re handing out, or that we’re doing, or we’re giving,” explained Inwood-Montrose. “It’s that we want to empower people to feel that they have control over their own lives and that they can live with dignity and live how they want to live. We do that by providing programming and services that strengthen their health, their safety, their social connections and that allow them to be self-empowered.”

The increase of visitor traffic has seen the shop ware into some much-needed repairs. A leaky roof has damaged its home on Hastings Street North so they are in need of a Winston Salem roofing contractor.

“We need to make sure that the space is protected so that the energies go back into our community and our programs instead of going into repairing a building,” said Inwood-Montrose.

CCNH is in the process of applying for Canada’s 150 infrastructure grant to repair its roof.

Recently, the organization applied for the New Horizons for Seniors grant to put towards chair yoga for at the Riverside Chateau. It also received an Ontario Sport and Recreation Communities Fund grant for similar programming.

The more help CCNH receives, the more Inwood-Montrose suggested it can expand for the community. The Heritage Shoppe is looking for donations and support from community members to fix its roof and continue programming.

“If anyone wants to write letters of support, what I’m asking for is what does the Heritage Shoppe mean to you? How has the Heritage Shoppe touched your life? If anyone wants to offer up a letter I would appreciate that just bring it up to community care or to me.”