Vernon volunteer wins new tires for giving seniors a lift

A Vernon woman has been given a brand new set of tires as a thank-you for her dedication to helping seniors in the community.

Through its Better At Home program, the NexusBC Community Resource Centre helps seniors to live a healthy and sustainable life at home for as long as they can. Its services include rides to the doctor, housecleaning, minor home repair and social activities, to name a few.

NexusBC needs more volunteers to help seniors in Vernon, especially driving them to appointments or for groceries. To that end, NexusBC applied for Kal Tire’s Tires for Good program, which helps charities or non-profits drive positive change in their communities. Through the program, NexusBC built a recruitment program for the winter season when many of their volunteers leave for warmer destinations. The goal was to engage with their current volunteers to get them to drive more as well as recruit new volunteers through a contest to win the tires.

Dixie Ross, who provided a total of 33 rides to seniors during the contest period, won.

Ross joined NexusBC as a volunteer in June 2020 and has since provided 276 rides.

“Dixie is one of our most ardent drivers, so we were pleased for the gift to go to someone who works hard for our community,” said Elaine Waugh, Better At Home coordinator.

“Our goal was to recruit more drivers, so we saw an opportunity with Kal Tire’s Tires for Good gift to attract volunteer drivers in Vernon,” said Lee Brinkman, marketing and events manager with NexusBC. “We saw huge engagement with our current volunteers and had several new volunteers sign up.”

NexusBC will be offering a similar contest beginning in May. Details and volunteer applications are available at nexusbc.ca.

Kal Tire is celebrating 70 years of community engagement, expert service and commitment to the communities they serve around the world. Applications are now open to apply for Kal Tire community programs. To see if you are eligible to apply, click here.