Volunteer has helped community for more than 20 years
It’s been more than 20 years of donating time in the community for one volunteer whose focus is the Brain Injured Group and most recently St. Vincent de Paul Society. Bob Dewhirst has been a member of the board of directors at the Prince George Brain Injured Group (PGBIG) where duties include providing governance and setting policies.
Dewhirst believes the Brain Injured Group offers a unique service to the community and he is committed to see it continue to provide services to those living with acquired brain injury. The non-profit society offers prevention support and provides education and rehabilitation, which enhances the lives of the brain injured.
The local Brain Injured Group offers several services, including case management, employment services, social events and support groups.
Currently, there is an outreach program called the Northern Brain Injured Group and at this point it’s situated within the PG BIG building, which the society moved into about two years ago, located at 1070 Fourth Ave.
“The Brain Injured Group is under very good direction from Alison Hagreen, the executive director,” said Dewhirst, who is very pleased about all the programs and supports offered through the group.
Dewhirst began volunteering at St. Vincent de Paul Society after being prompted by his wife, Linda, who volunteers at the thrift shop along with other family members.
“I definitely support what the society is all about,” said Dewhirst.
St. Vincent de Paul Society offers meals to those in need 365 days a year at their Drop-In Centre, 1220 Second Ave., provides food hampers year round, and offers clothing and household items to those in need through a voucher program and homestart program through the thrift store still located at 1180 Third Ave.
Dewhirst, who used to be in construction, was part of the team who looked at the suitability of the space located at 1645 Third Ave., which will be converted to accommodate the society’s bigger thrift shop and hopefully be ready to open for business in August.
The building was formerly the Golden Palace restaurant, just down the block from Books & Co., so there is extensive renovations to be done.
“The structure itself is quite sound so we made the decision to put in an offer,” said Dewhirst.
On the technical side, Dewhirst used his skills to help with the project.
“So I’ve set up a Dropbox account where we’ve got a spread sheet with lots of tabs for handling the scope of work for the trades that are involved and for the volunteers. There’s timelines and hopefully we can live within the parameters of those timelines to get the work done.”
Dewhirst also looks at the forecasted budget to get the renovations done.
In a partnership Dewhirst said the Prince George Activators, a program designed to support men as they transition from incarceration back into the community, will see a supervisor and four men on the site to help with the thrift shop renovations.
Relying on volunteers to do demolition and renovations is a new experience for Dewhirst who always worked within strict timelines in the construction business.
Dewhirst, who has a passion for cross country skiing and has been out of it for a season due to injury, would like to get back into once he’s healed and use his certification to teach and be an officiant for competitions in the future. He was introduced to the sport nine years ago when he was 59 and has loved it ever since.
He enjoys a physical challenge and did last year’s Climb for Cancer where he scaled the face of the cutbanks not just once but 12 times for a good cause as all proceeds went to support Prince George’s Kordyban Lodge that offers a home away from home for those out-oftowners undergoing cancer treatment at Prince George’s Centre for the North.
For the thrift store renovations, Dewhirst will offer his services to assist the project manager Ron Walsh.