Greetings to all of our Community Hall members, supporters, volunteers and those just curious about our organization. We hope you had a wonderful, fun-filled summer and are hunkering down for the fall/winter. What a great time to get involved with the Community Hall association, now that most of us are focusing on indoor pursuits. WE NEED AND WELCOME new and returning volunteers! More on this later.
In May we ran the fun outdoor “Spring Fling”, with Maypole Dancing, head wreath making, yummy home-made snacks, and featuring a great band from Nanaimo/Lantzville, the Seasoned Sinners Blues Band. So much enjoyment dancing barefoot on the grass in front of the Lund Gathering Place. Also great to show off the ever-developing berm work. It is such a joy to see the hard work (by MANY volunteers) paying off! Thanks to all who did the labour and contributed various plants, rocks, mulch etc.
In June we hosted Saburo Murata and his band (pretty much the reunion of Masamba), and even those who did not get up and dance on the grass were groovin’ in their chairs. Shout out to Joyce Babula for organizing this concert (and sharing her photo below)!
Saburo and his band
Our 71st Annual Salmon BBQ was a resounding success… perfect weather, no wasps, 7 wonderful local bands who entertained us royally from beginning to end, and of course hundreds of delicious salmon dinners were served. There was a wonderful, palpable, community spirit and energy throughout, as mentioned by many attendees. A big thank you to Virginia Ebbels for being this year’s Salmon BBQ coordinator! Your hard work was much appreciated by the board. And well done Gabriola Community, we raised $20,399! Where does that money go you may ask? Much of it to pay for our expensive comprehensive insurance (which now includes insuring the Lund Pavilion).
*Photo supplied by Gabriola Sounder – inset total information adjusted and enlarged for newsletter use.
Other operating expenses, such as maintenance, phone, utilities, and building upgrades rise every year, to no one’s surprise. So supporting any of our events is much appreciated. YOUR community hall is such an historic and important part of the Gabriola heartbeat. It continues to host multiple recreation and sporting activities, musical nights and dances, weddings, birthdays, Celebrations of Life, immunization clinics, trivia nights, and a host of other activities.
The Hall can’t run itself, and this is why we need community-minded folks to volunteer… to join our board, to help with any special Community Hall sponsored event (BBQ, concert, grounds maintenance, set-up and take-down, helping deliver goods with a truck) and on it goes. You could volunteer for a one-off event, or become a regular helper. To add your name as a potential volunteer, please reach out to us at: info@gabriolacommunityhall.com.
This year we are losing 2 of our valued board members: Brenda Upton, who has been our treasurer, and this past year, also our rental agent. We thank her for all her dedicated work, and wish her well in her new adventures, now residing on the ‘big island’. A huge welcome and thank you as well to Trevor Cook, our new Hall Rental Agent!
And we are sorely going to miss having Laurie McDonald on the board… she has been involved literally for decades, and for this past year as president. Although Laurie will no longer be on the board, we strongly suspect she will still continue to assist and be a wealth of information for us. Thank you Laurie for being such a work-horse for the Community Hall!
Which brings us to more volunteer requests… we will need to fill 2 board positions, and are really hopeful that someone with an interest in being treasurer may step up.
Annual General Meeting notice:
2026 ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING
Everyone welcome!
Sunday, November 22 at 2pm
at the Gabriola Island Community Hall
Refreshments served. Members in good standing may vote. Not a member already? You can sign up upon arriving for the AGM and membership is FREE.
Christmas Craft Fair notice:
As always, we are grateful for your donations! If you would like to donate by cheque, please make cheque out to GICHA (Gabriola Island Community Hall Association) and mail it to PO Box 205, Gabriola, BC V0R 1X0.
Or to donate online use the DONATE button at the top of our website or use this direct link to the CanadaHelps donation form for the Community Hall: www.canadahelps.org/en/charities/gabriola-island-community-hall-association. Year-end tax receipts will follow.
We look forward to welcoming you at the AGM November 22 @ 2pm and to the Christmas Craft Fair on December 12th!
All the best and stay well, from the Community Hall board of directors.
