Clean-up by Variety Village staff
Six weeks after hundreds of homes flooded in Birch Cliff and other parts of Ward 36, Variety Village has stepped forward to say it also flooded July 15th and August 10th and sustained more than $200,000 in damages.
In a letter to the community, Variety Village CEO John Wilson says the torrential rains this summer damaged the roof near the weight room and flooded the taekwondo studio in the basement.
Christmas party supplies ruined
The taekwondo studio was also being used to store products and supplies for Variety Village’s annual fundraising events, including the Christmas party, and all those supplies had to be destroyed.
Ruined Christmas party supplies
Not fully covered by insurance
Wilson says much of the $200,000 in damages will be covered by insurance but the charity needs to come up with $50,000 for restoration work that is not covered. This includes roof repair and the digging out and plugging of compromised vents in the basement.
Flood relief campaign launched
Wilson has announced the establishment of a Flood Relief Campaign and is appealing to the community to help Variety Village “recover from what nature has thrown at us”.
“We are asking the assistance of our community to help us recover from what nature has thrown at us,” says Wilson. “As a cash-strapped charity, we seem to take two steps forward, and then something like this sets up back one step.”
Wilson says the size of the donation doesn’t matter – a gift of $20, $50, $100 or whatever you can give will go a long way.
Summer swim camp at Variety Village
If you’d like to donate, you can click here.
World-class integrated programming
Variety Village is a charity that has been helping young people with disabilities since it started as a school in 1948. Since 1981 it has been offering world-class integrated sports programming as well as summer camps and life skills and learning programs for the disabled.
Team Canada’s Adam Lancia
Paralympians
Right now there are five athletes and one coach from Variety Village competing in the London Paralympic Games in the sport of wheelchair basketball. Tracey Ferguson is on the women’s team and the men’s team includes Adam Lancia, Tyler Miller, Abdi Dini Fatah and Brandon Wagner, as well as Variety Village staff member Steve Bialowas, who is the coach. Canada’s assistant chef de mission in London, Elisabeth Walker-Young, started swimming at Variety Village at age 11
Patchwork funding
Variety Village funding comes from single donations, monthly donations, corporate funding for various programs and some capital grants from the Ontario government.
In 2009, Variety Village applied to the federal government for infrastructure money but was rejected. Some of that money would have been used to fix the roof. Rejection by the federal government meant that the provincial government did not provide infrastructure money either.
Taekwondo equipment drying out at Variety Village
Timing is terrible
Like many people in Birch Cliff, when the rains came, Variety Village staff raced to the basement in rubber boots to try and salvage what they could. They dried out the flooded areas, removed items that weren’t ruined and air dried the taekwondo mats and equipment. The quick response of the staff led to Variety Village getting a clean bill of health regarding mould.
The flooding couldn’t have happened at a worse time because taekwondo classes are scheduled to begin on September 24th. Variety Village is also hosting an international taekwondo tournament in November that is expected to draw 1,000 people.
Variety Village has been tapped to host Powerlifting and Goal Ball at the 2015 Pan Am Games, but nothing has been confirmed.
Dear Hedy,
You are such an ambassador for us at Variety Village. Thank you. There are so many inspirational stories at Variety – each day I meet one of our members who lifts me up with their determination and spirit. You’ve captured this so well in this article. Thanks too for putting a spotlight on the unfortunate story of the flood, which has set us back. We know that this recent trick of mother nature hit so many of our neighbours too.
Hedy, we are so fortunate to have you in our community! Thanks for all that you are doing!
Sincerely,
Donna Richardson, Director of Development Variety Village
Glad you liked the story Donna. Variety Village is doing important work and there are many of us here in Birch Cliff hoping this has a positive outcome.