Heather Latter
It’s off to a good start.
The first two days of voting for Knox United Church’s submission in the Aviva Community Fund Challenge has the local idea on par with many of the top submissions.
“We’re pretty pleased with everything so far,” Bill Gushulak, co-chair of the “Knox Renewal” fundraising campaign, said yesterday morning, which saw the idea in 15th place at the time.
But as of press time today, the submission had garnered 551 votes to drop to 17th place.
“We just want to encourage people to continue voting because every vote counts,” Gushulak stressed.
The local church once again is hoping the community will support it in the quest for funding for its renewal project to make the building more accessible.
“[It] is a large, centrally-located building used by the entire community, but currently it is not fully-accessible to people who use wheelchairs, motorized scooters, or other mobility aids,” the submission notes.
As a result, it says many people miss out on valuable family and community activities.
Gushulak noted Knox is a community venue serving people of all ages and levels of mobility through a variety of groups and activities, including the Fort Frances Nursery School, the district music and drama festival, the annual community Christmas dinner, Girl Guides, and Alcoholics Anonymous, among others.
“At present, visitors in wheelchairs or scooters do not have access to washroom facilities in the building, nor can they reach the hall on the lower level to attend community social functions,” says the submission, which was created by Lisa Brockie.
“The stairs are also difficult and dangerous for those with limited mobility,” it notes.
In order to correct the situation, the church plans to install an elevator and barrier-free washrooms, with an estimated price tag of $160,000.
Final renovation plans have been approved and work is set to begin as soon as funds are in place.
The submission is entered into the $50,000-$100,000 category, and is competing against a variety of ideas all across Canada.
Gushulak said there are a couple of submissions that were well in the lead with their votes, but he feels their goal is reachable.
“We’ve got a lot of encouraging comments from people who are voting and we hope it continues on,” he remarked.
“This is a great opportunity to bring in outside financial support to our project and we are confident that together we can be successful.”
The Aviva Challenge is based on a voting system, with people able to vote once a day.
“It is fresh in our mind that last year we missed out by only 250 votes, so it is vitally important that we remind our contacts daily to make sure they cast their [votes],” Gushulak stressed.
“If we can get all the supporters who have voted once to continue voting each day that seems to be the key,” he added, noting some people have mentioned they are having trouble getting on the site.
“But we just hope that they persevere because it is there,” he said.
There will be three qualifying rounds prior to the December semi-finals, with voting in the first qualifying round running until 11 a.m. on Oct. 13.
Top 10 submissions from each qualifying round proceed directly to the semi-finals.
“We’re excited and we’re appreciative of the support from the public,” Gushulak said.
“It would be a great addition to our community to be able to have another accessible building.”
To vote, visit www.avivacommunityfund.org/ideas/acf19619
