Exciting Workroom Improvements!
The past three weeks at MCC Thrift on Mill have been a whirlwind of activity! If you’ve volunteered recently, you’ve likely noticed significant changes in both the workroom and retail area. From the initial idea to approval and implementation, this transformation happened in just a few short weeks! We hope you received our email outlining the upcoming changes before work began.
Several factors influenced this decision, including:
• Increasing donation levels and limited space for Receiving volunteers, particularly during peak times.
• A rising number of volunteer slips, trips, and falls due to congestion in the workroom.
• The need to reduce physical handling of goods by enabling the use of carts, minimizing strain on staff and volunteers.
• Alleviating congestion in the hallway between the workroom and retail area, creating a more functional space for book department volunteers and others working from carts.
• Improving inefficient processing systems caused by space constraints.
Volunteers Needed
• Adding more worktables to accommodate additional volunteers.
• Ensuring all volunteers can work together in the same space, enhancing staff support and collaboration.
To create additional workroom space, we repurposed an office and the multi-purpose room. As a result, we now have a designated meeting room for volunteer orientations, staff meetings, internal training, and more. While the total square footage remains the same, 500 sq. ft. has been reallocated to better serve both the retail and receiving/processing areas.
Once the structural changes are complete, our next priority will be streamlining efficiencies. We encourage you to share your feedback by completing the survey in the kitchen—your input will help shape our next steps!
We truly appreciate your flexibility, patience, and adaptability throughout this process. Thank you for your continued support!
Karla Musselman Thrift Coordinator
We need two receivers on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays. Please see Ken if you know of anyone. We need receivers on Saturday afternoons.
We also need helpers (two) to put out clothes on Saturday mornings and afternoons, and we need helpers (one or two) to work in housewares on Saturday mornings or afternoons.
We do need more students to join our Friday night Dream Team, so let’s get the word out.
Before & After Photos
Workroom BEFORE ... and AFTER
Tulips by A. E. Stallings
The tulips make me want to paint, Something about the way they drop Their petals on the tabletop
And do not wilt so much as faint. Er ist auferstanden
New Faces Around MCC Thrift on Mill
attendant
Shop News
1. Please excuse our mess as we renovate! We seek you for your ideas on how to reshape our departments as we grow into our new space, so please fill out the survey. Your voice matters. Thank you for your patience and understanding and help in reorganizing department flows! This will ensure greater efficiencies and safer environments for everyone.
2. Join me in welcoming our Volunteer Engagement Manager LiTunjia Olubusi. She will invest her time in volunteer recruitment, onboarding, supporting and responding to the needs of our diverse volunteer team.
3. We begin our new fiscal year in April. The good news is we not only met our budget but exceeded it! Congratulations to all of you for a job well done! Many hands make light the work! ToM volunteers are the BEST!
4. Join me in congratulating Jennifer Tiessen on 5 years with MCC!
5. Let’s bless Kyle, as he is going on Paternity leave April 8. Congratulations Kyle & Evon!
Around the Shop
Spaceman Herb and Louise
Elizabeth, Helen, Irma
Lydia wearing a fun hat
Lovely Larissa
BIRTHDAYS April
Rosemary McInnis
Bev Brandenburg
Mitchell Hildebrandt
Alice Wilkins
Ron Tiessen
Elizabeth (Liz) Dick 4/3 4/4 4/4 4/4 4/5 4/6
Pauline Long Larissa Friesen Brenda Leitch Abe Epp Bertha Tiessen
Happy St. Paddy’s Day from our hearts to yours!
Welcome to our New Volunteer Engagement Manager
Welcome LiTunjia Olubusi to our team! She will be serving as Volunteer Engagement Manager, rounding out our Management team here at the Thrift on Mill.
LiTunjia comes to us with an Associate Business Degree, certifications in Excel, PowerPoint and Quickbooks. She has great attention to detail and organizational efficiency-spotting as her superhero power!
She has 12 years of business administration experience and customer service and is no novice to the volunteer management world, having volunteered in an evangelistic ministry with her husband for years with youth groups and newcomers- young and old alike. Immigrating to Canada a few years ago, she knows what it is like and will bring a sensitive, kind and loving spirit to her work with volunteers. We are so pleased LiTunjia said yes. We look forward to hearing her ideas and sharing in her enthusiasm for doing God’s work of relief, development and peacemaking in the name of Christ. What she is most excited about is community engagement and she looks forward to creating relationships using her faith and leadership skills alongside us.
Thank you to all who got into the spirit of fun and fellowship! (L to R): Lynn B. and Beth K., Maureen, Rosemary, Marlene
A Tapestry of Healing and Hope
MCC Ontario’s Indigenous Neighbours program is committed to walking alongside Indigenous communities in friendship and solidarity. We create opportunities to learn about the harmful impacts of colonization and residential schools, while equipping churches and individuals for meaningful reconciliation and peacebuilding.
One of the most powerful expressions of this commitment is Quilts for Survivors, founded by Vanessa Genier. This initiative began as a personal gesture of sewing quilts to comfort Residential School Survivors after the discovery of unmarked graves at former school sites. From that simple act, a remarkable movement has flourished. Quilts for Survivors has already delivered over 6,000 quilts across Canada and aims to reach all 40,000 Survivors. Each quilt offers more than warmth. It stands for recognition, healing, and a visible reminder
that Survivors’ voices matter and their resilience is honored. These quilts are a touchpoint for renewed understanding and meaningful relationships— an invitation to listen, learn, and move toward reconciliation together.
MCC Ontario is proud to support Vanessa’s mission by helping secure a stable workspace, connecting her with volunteers, and contributing 40 quilts for distribution. Just as each quilt is carefully pieced together, so too is the relationshipbuilding and support that surrounds this work.
Your volunteer service at MCC Thrift is an essential thread in this tapestry of healing. Every hour you give and every item you help sell supports programs like Quilts for Survivors, extending compassion and hope into communities across Ontario and beyond. Thank you for being part of this journey toward reconciliation.
Myanmar Earthquake Response
MCC will be responding to the earthquake in Myanmar. Donate now to support our local partners providing emergency food, hygiene supplies and blankets to families in need. Please pray for safety for those affected and for partner staff who are working to respond. The situation is made even more challenging after years of conflict, causing lack of electricity and the collapse of the healthcare system. Donate today to provide relief to people in need.
Vanessa Genier shares a new quilt ready for a Residential School Survivor—one of thousands made through Quilts for Survivors, a movement bringing comfort, recognition, and hope across Canada. MCC
Photo/Heather Gallian
Active Bystander Training
Join Active Bystander Training (TAB) to learn how to safely intervene when you see harmful or isolating behavior. We’ll address bullying, relationship abuse, sexual violence, and emotional distress—helping you overcome hesitation and respond nonviolently. Strengthen our community with everyday actions that make a difference. Sign up and be a force for good! For details, visit mcc.org/events/training-active-bystanders-niagara
