In honour of their grandparents and the Coast community they love, the Humphries family has donated $130,000 to the Gibsons Public Market to help it come to fruition.
The donation comes from grandkids of Tom and Ellen Humphries – Bill and Joan, Gerry and Linda, and Dick and Margie Humphries.
Bill and Joan put up the initial $100,000 donation in Tom and Ellen’s honour and two of Bill’s cousins and their wives also stepped up with $15,000 each, bringing the total donation to $130,000.
Tom and Ellen will be recognized by way of a plaque when the new Gibsons Public Market is opened to the community. A target opening date has been set for the late fall of this year.
Bill, who retired in Gibsons with his wife, said the Humphries family has been enjoying life on the Coast for several generations, starting with Bill’s grandpa Tom who first visited the Coast in 1908 on a trip from England.
He fell in love with the Sunshine Coast and rented a place where he and his family could enjoy the area for nearly 20 years until he bought a property on Soames Point and moved permanently in about 1926.
The property on Soames Point is still in the family and enjoyed by Tom and Ellen’s 10 grandchildren and other members of the family who treasure the time spent there.
“All of us have such incredibly warm feelings about the area,” Bill said, noting he felt giving to the Gibsons Public Market was a perfect way to honour his grandparents and invest in the coastal community the Humphries family holds dear.
“I just came up with the idea and thought ‘what a unique opportunity to honour our grandparents.’ All of the 10 grandchildren have been so appreciative of the time they have spent and will continue to spend up there.”
He hopes more of the grandchildren will step forward with funds in the future, but for now he’s pleased with the support he’s found from his family for the market endeavour.
To date, $2.6 million has been raised for the $3.5 million Gibsons Public Market project.
Originally the price tag was set at $3 million, but some additions and improvements to the design that will allow for a larger marine exhibit, larger meeting room and larger elevator upped the final cost.
The fundraising team aims to raise $500,000 from the residents of the Coast for the project over the summer months, while they continue to seek larger grants and donations from corporate sponsors.
Executive director Gerry Zipursky said the hot real estate market on the Coast right now has caused a scarcity of contractors, but he’s hopeful contractors will be able to put the roof on the new market in July, which would pave the way for plumbing and electrical work to be done inside.
Once finished, the market will become a year-round community hub that features a marine education centre, a public market, a community kitchen, a rentable commercial kitchen, a café and a community amenity space.
See www.gibsonspublicmarket.com for more.
