Killam Community Hall looking for community engagement for 25th year of operations

The Killam Community Hall will celebrate its 25th anniversary in 2015, with a whole new board in place, looking to try and engage the community in the future of the building.

This year the board has also appointed members at large, who have agreed to have their names stand for volunteer projects.

The Hall has had some capital projects completed within the last few years, those include a new projector and screen, an instant hot water system, a fire suppression system, light replacement, and a new hardwood dance floor.

On their wish list is a sound system, new dishwasher, and new stove. Board member Carol Kinzer says the tables also need some maintenance work.

Also identified as a potential issues were leaks in the roof, and replacement and upgrade of some electrical.

New board members discussed possible fundraising efforts, at their annual general meeting on Jan. 28, and finding a way to bring the building back into a user-paid position for operating costs.

The building operations incurred an operating loss last year.

The Town of Killam has agreed to help the Hall Board over the next three years, at $10,000 per year, says Kinzer, but she would like to see the community invest more into the building, and help find new ways to keep it rented out.

Board members and volunteers already work casinos when their turn comes around, and Kinzer said she is looking into other fundraising possibilities, and for ideas on how the hall may be utilized to a greater extent.

“I want to know what the residents of Killam want to see and do in their community hall,” she says.

“I really want to involve people, and families, to keep this building viable in our community.

“We need their help.”

Kinzer said that the Town Administration has taken over the booking process and really streamlined it so that bookings may be made online.

“We are very lucky that the hall has been so well-maintained, it’s really a beautiful building, but there are problems starting to peek out under the surface.

“We are at a tipping point, if new volunteers had not come forward, we may have been having a different conversation today,” Kinzer says. She believes that it does require an effort from residents to get out and support local groups, but says what you put in, you get back, and more.

Leslie Cholowsky
Editor

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