The Sparwood Futures Society is posing a challenge to the citizens of Sparwood in the hopes of increasing personal donations to the Lilac Terrace expansion project.
The society, according to treasurer Sharon Arola, will be matching personal donations up to $200 per person and up to $25,000 total.
“We’re really hoping to stimulate donations from the public to finish off our fundraising,” said Arola.
Lilac Terrace was responsible for fundraising $400,000 of the estimated $3.6 million construction costs for the project. Money from the public, according to Lilac Terrace Administrator Deborah Friesen, will help to cushion the money currently raised in case final building costs are higher than expected.
“When you’re planning something you have an idea of what everything will cost,” said Friesen, “and, invariably things always come out more than that, so you always want to have a little cushioning.”
She went on to say, “If we can get the community donating, then we can be sure that we can outfit the apartments and the community rooms especially in the way that we want to. We really want to encourage the public to donate.”
The community rooms, according to Arola, should be seen as a huge advantage for the District of Sparwood.
“A thing to keep in mind in this new expansion,” she noted, “is there will be a palliative care and a respite care facility, and these will not only be used by the residents of Lilac Terrace, they will be open to the general public to use as needed.”
The Sparwood Futures Society is a non-profit organization that manages a number of Sparwood projects including the Mountain Shadows Campground and the Sparwood Water Park. Members of the society include the Sparwood District Chamber of Commerce, the Sparwood Lions Club and others.