Sunshine Coast Community Services Society (SCCSS) is celebrating some great news. After having been awarded a five-year contract to continue their operations at the Sechelt Visitor Centre, they received confirmation of their success in obtaining a B.C. Gaming grant. The grant will go towards another year of volunteer centre funding.
"We're thrilled to be able to continue to build on our experience of running one of the nicest visitor and volunteer centres in the province" said Bronia Kingsbury, manager of the centre.
The SCCSS' combination of a visitor and volunteer centre under one roof allows for the sharing of staff and resources, resulting in an information hub that is utilized by both residents and visitors.
In addition to providing tourists with information ranging from accommodation to recreation and attractions, the centre promotes local events. They also engage the public with information on non-profit organizations and encourage volunteerism within the community.
The centre has been extremely busy, as Kingsbury said more than 15,000 people visited the centre last year.
"The feedback from visitors has been consistently positive," she added.
The centre looks forward to continuing their success and is focused on achieving various goals. The volunteer portion of the centre will carry on with the primary function of referring volunteer opportunities to community members as well as volunteer management and board training for local non-profits. They plan to revamp their website to make it more user-friendly and to provide training in grant writing for those who wish to apply for specific grants.
The visitor portion remains committed to partnering with local organizations to build marketing opportunities in an effort to attract more visitors. They are pro-active in their goal of expanding their membership to various businesses that benefit from tourism while keeping their fee economical.
The promotion of the use of Spirit Square is also planned. "The square has the potential to be a fun-filled dynamic location for all kinds of community activities for both visitors and locals," Kingsbury said.
The centre will host a public open house on Thursday, June 2, from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.
