Thompson Royal Purple Lodge No. 276 ended its 60-year history in Thompson in grand fashion Aug. 16, donating $29,000 to the Thompson Crisis Centre’s children’s program.
Established in March 1962 with close to 100 members, the Royal Purple Thompson chapter is now down to just two — Nadia Portey and Rita Werstroh.
Portey has been a member of the service club for over half a century. She can’t say exactly how many years it’s been, though she knows she joined back before she was married, saying it was a good way to get to know people in the community.
Werstroh, who’s also lived in Thompson for more than 50 years, has been a member for the past eight years.
Following this donation, the club will be dissolved but crisis centre executive director Helen Trudeau says the money her organization is getting will ensure that the Royal Purple continue doing good.
“You are enabling us to serve the First Nations children and the communities around Thompson,” said Trudeau, recalling her reaction when she was informed that Royal Purple intended to make the crisis centre its final donation recipient. “I basically wept. That’s a prayer request fulfilled for us. Sometimes were limited with funding and this funding is going to go a long way for the kids.”
Plans for the money include bringing Ken Bighetty in to do puppet therapy with the children of clients. It might also go toward art and music therapy and specialized toys for children with special needs.
It will make the crisis centre’s annual family night in February much easier to plan, knowing ahead where the money is coming from, says Trudeau.
“This is going to help a lot with that,” she predicted.
Nelson Pruder, who has been part of the crisis centre’s board for the past 10 years and is currently its chair, said even though programs and services may seem like not that much individually, they’re huge for the children, who often arrive at the centre with nothing more than the clothes they’re wearing.
“To help them is a very big thing,” he said. “To receive a donation of that size, it’s monumental. There’s no question that we will put it to very good use on behalf of our clients and the children that come here.”
Recipients of Royal Purple donations over the past 15 years have included the Thompson Humane Society, the committee that advocated and fundraised for Thompson’s skatepark, Northern Spirit Manor and the Juniper Centre.
Though it’s sad to know that the club will never make another donation, Portey says it’s always been about those in need.
“We’re happy that we can make someone else happy,” she said.
In recognition of their tremendous contribution to the crisis centre, Werstroh and Portey were treated to pizza and wings from Pizza Hut and cake from Robin’s Donuts at an afternoon feast on Aug. 16. They also received flowers, beaded keychains, t-shirts, tobacco pouches and bags from the crisis centre as tokens of appreciation for their group’s generosity.
