By Cheryl Jahn

Another miracle for local seniors

Apr 30, 2025 | 2:54 PM

PRINCE GEORGE – Noon is lunch time at the Elder Citizens’ Recreation Centre and it’s a busy place. But not all seniors are in the position to pay for the treat of a good meal at ECRA. The issue around seniors’ needs has become more acute in recent years and that’s why the Community Foundation was shocked by a recent development.

“We had an anonymous donor come in wanting to discuss how to look at different options for some emergency funding within the community, because we know seniors are suffering right now from multiple issues and funding being one of them,” explains Rae-Ann Noonan, Executive Director with the Foundation. “So we had talked with them and then we talked with the Prince George Council of Seniors as well about what the needs were.”

That individual has since committed to a donation of $10,000 a month to be administered through the Foundation to be directed to the Council of Seniors.

Needless to say, the Council of Seniors is overjoyed when the Foundation paid a visit.

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“And we were just shocked. In a good way, of course, because we can see we know from our offers from the Council of Seniors office how many seniors are actually going through a difficult time,” says Malhar Kendurkar, Executive Director for the Council of Seniors.

Last October, Miracle Theatre announced the latest recipient of its annual production: the Council of Seniors. An endowment fund has been created from the ticket sales.

This once-monthly donation of $10,000 will backstop that fund until its built up.

“So we are running it to the end of the year,” says Noonan. “So till December. And then we’ll have to assess at that time and see what it’s like. It’s kind of like building the plane as you’re flying. It is a lot of moving parts because it is a pilot program. So right now it’s going fantastic though.”

But long-time advocate for seniors, Shirley Bond says it is an unfortunate reality of present-day.

“The stories are painful to hear. You know, seniors who are deciding whether or not to cut their prescription pill in half because they can’t afford to refill that prescription. And when you think about the challenges we’re facing, the tariffs situation, increasing cost, rental costs, all of those things make life much more challenging for vulnerable seniors.”

She says affordability was front and centre during both the provincial and federal elections. And there is a body in BC that those leaders need to listen to: the BC Seniors Advocate.

“The reports that have been produced that show the gaps in income, the challenges that seniors are facing, are extremely powerful and important. So we are lucky as a province to have a seniors advocate. And I think that role becomes even more important.”

In the meantime, the funds will be available on a case-by-case basis.

“So we’ll look at every case. And we have a grand committee. So four of us will look at look at the applications, and then we approve the applications. And so, yeah, that’s you know, it’s such an important program,” says Kendurkar.

And a much-welcomed one.