Dear Sir:
I’m responding to Terrace city council candidate Stacey Tyers’ statement published Nov. 5, 2014 in which she said her call to run for council originally in 2011 was partly motivated by the city’s decision to provide funding to My Mountain Co-op (MMC) rather than other social issues.
At MMC, we have a slogan “an active community is a healthy community.” In an ideal world, there would enough funding for all aspects of a community to be fully supported.
However, in Terrace, we have a limited budget and a council that works very hard to spread its support, thereby creating a well-rounded community.
In these times of rapid change and development, a well-rounded community vision is very important.
Recreational opportunities are a vital part of a healthy community. As a non-profit community service co-op, the role of MMC is to provide a service to the community.
Our service is Shames Mountain. While skiing may seem irrelevant to some, it creates wonderful opportunities for many.
MMC/Shames is an important community asset in many ways. MMC/Shames is a recruiting and retention tool for doctors, nurses, social workers, teachers and other professionals who can be hard to attract.
MMC/Shames employs over 50 people – several of them being First Nations youth.
MMC/Shames also runs a Northern Snow Angel program that supports youth who would otherwise be unable to afford the experience of a trip to the mountains with their school or special interest group.
MMC/Shames facilitates a community from across the region – of all ages, sizes, ethnicities, and socio-economic backgrounds – who share a love of the mountains. MMC/Shames is a place where families can enjoy outdoor activity together creating lifelong healthy habits and strong community bonds.
As a non-profit community service co-op, we innovatively collaborate with our members and community to create a successful, sustainable and affordable operation.
Endless volunteer hours go into making MMC/Shames Mountain its current success. It is my hope that by writing this letter a greater understanding of MMC’s role in our community can be gained.
My Mountain Co-op is very grateful for the financial and in kind support we have received to date from the entire community, including the support of Terrace city council.
We hope to continue and foster that relationship for the benefit of the entire community.
Meredith Skimson,
Chair and Volunteer Director,
My Mountain Co-op,
Terrace, B.C.