It’s June – summer and warm weather is upon us (although as I write this its really cold outside). A time for family, friends and time to be outdoors. Our first summer barbecue is coming up in a few weeks – I hope we can see you there.
The store continues to grow – we are off to our best year ever. It is fun watching our many customers come in and find new treasures of their own. Each month new customers find us and fall in love with
BIRTHDAYS June
Brenda Helen
Lyra
Rosemary
June 1
June 1
June 2
June 3
the store and its offerings. When I see the numbers, I have to pause and give thanks to each of you for your time, energy and talents. We do great work here and it shows.
I wish you all an incredible month and wish you and yours a safe summer.
Kent Buhrke General Manager MCC Thrift on Kent
June 5
June 5
June 9
June 11
June 12
June 13
June 13
June 15
June 16
June 19
New Summer student: Meet Eric
June 19
June 21
June 23
June 24
June 24
June 28
June 28
June 29
June 30
Eric Regehr is our new summer student. He started mid-May and will be here until the end of August, primarily in the workroom. He worked at the New Hamburg Thrift Store last summer and volunteered there as a cashier previously. He just finished his first year at McMaster University for mechanical engineering. He hopes to work in the automotive industry at some point.
In his free time, Eric enjoys playing basketball with his friends and watching basketball. He also plays slow-pitch with a church league. He enjoys listening to country music. Last summer he went to Quebec with friends, and really enjoyed the outdoors there and hiking Mount Tremblac. He hopes to go back to Quebec one day.
Please join us in welcoming Eric!
Building a Community of Belonging and Inclusion
MCC’ s mission statement says: “MCC shares God’s love and compassion for all in the name of Christ by responding to basic human needs and working for peace and justice. MCC envisions communities worldwide in right relationship with God, one another and creation.” When volunteers come in for an interview, many of them say they are looking for a place of belonging and connection, as well as meaningful work. Belonging is a basic human need. One of the identified purposes of thrift stores is “Offering a friendly, caring presence in the community, showing value and respect to all.” When we invite volunteers into the mission and work of MCC, we respond to the basic human needs of connection, belonging and meaningful work. We have a beautifully diverse group of volunteers and seek to be a place where we are friendly and caring, showing respect to people of all ages and walks of life.
To build this, we need to work together. Each and every volunteer is invited into the role of building community. In the next month we will be forming a group of Volunteer Community Builders – volunteers who agree to be intentional in welcoming new people to our community. In addition, you will see in this newsletter that I have introduced new volunteers and listed what days they volunteer. This will help you see who is new on your shift, so that you can introduce yourself and welcome them. We hope that between these two slight shifts, we can better become a place of belonging and connection for every volunteer.
New volunteer role: Greeter!
As you know, our store can be a very busy place! We are looking to have someone be a greeter during our busy hours. A greeter would welcome customers, answer customer questions, listen to their suggestions, tidy shopping carts and unlock cases for customers and bring items to cash. Please spread the word to people who you think may be good for this role. Thanks for your help!
COME JOIN US FOR OUR
SUMMER BBQ
June 11th from 12-1 PM
FOOD – MEAT, VEGETARIAN AND HALAL; GLUTEN FREE MUSICIANS - PLEASE BRING YOUR INSTRUMENTS OUTDOOR GAMES TIME TO SPEND TOGETHER AND CELEBRATE THE START OF SUMMER!
VOLUNTEERS AND STAFF WELCOME!
EVEN IF YOU AREN’T SCHEDULED TO VOLUNTEER ON A WEDNESDAY, YOU ARE WELCOME TO JOIN US.
Welcome!
Welcome to all our new volunteers! We are thankful for your willingness to help with our mission here at MCC TOK! This month I have listed them by the shift when they volunteer, so that you can make note of who is new when you are in, and can make a point to welcome them!
Monday
Ruth – sort clothing
Adesola & Josslyneretail fashion
Ann – sort clothing
Dora – clothes sorting
Karenhousewares
Suraj – sports
Armanurreceiving
Irene - cash
Miriam – retail fashion
Novie –hardware
Lisa – toys
Kayley – retail store
Armanur –receiving
Daniela – retail fashion
Lyra – retail fashion
Suraj – cash
Masuma –seasonal
Joy – retail store
Suraj – sports
Mariana & Deborah - cash
Lisa - toys
Shalagh, Drew, Josslyn - retail
Joseph & Armanurreceiving
Masumaseasonal
Do you speak another language? Spanish? Arabic?
We often have new volunteers who are learning English. Most of them hope to improve their English while they are volunteering with us. Sometimes, it is useful to have someone to translate for them on their first shift, or to go over our policies with them. If you speak other languages and are willing to occasionally be called on to help translate, could you please send me an email and let me know what other languages you speak? Thanks for your help!
Are you a cottager? Going away for the summer?
Summer is coming, and some of you will be away for many weeks. The sooner Giselle knows what your plans are, the better she can plan to have people filling in while you are away. Please ensure to give her lots of notice. Thank you!
A Voice for the Voiceless: Justin’s Journey from DRC to Canada
Your work in volunteering at MCC’s thrift shop allows MCC to support refugees and their sponsors who are generously choosing welcome to support refugees resettling in Canada.
Justin Zihindula is one of those people. Justin has not only sponsored folks to resettle in Canada, but he himself was a refugee once and carries the weight of decades of war, displacement and survival. A nurse practitioner from eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Justin fled his homeland in 2003 when the conflict that began with the fall of President Mobutu in 1997 turned into a prolonged humanitarian crisis.
“The entire country was invaded… people were killed… the displacement is unspeakable,” Justin says. According to reports, over 6 million people have been killed in the conflict since 1997.
He lived in Uganda for six years, witnessing thousands of Congolese trapped in refugee camps without basic needs. He eventually resettled in Canada in 2009 with his wife, children and niece. Determined to help others, he sponsored additional family members and, more recently, a young woman and her children whose lives were threatened after she resisted a job offer from an illegal organ trafficking operation. Despite the trauma, Justin has not turned away from the needs of his people. He returned to DRC in 2020 to assess the impact of displacement and famine and
continues to advocate for those still waiting for safety. “There are very many Congolese currently in Uganda who have been there for over 10, 20 years… They have no clean water, they have no food, they have nothing.”
The ongoing crisis in eastern DRC has reached a new level of urgency. In January 2025, the rebel group M23 escalated violence in Goma, displacing hundreds of thousands. “My family members had to run for their lives,” Justin says. “Children saw corpses lying in the streets. It’s horrifying.”
Through it all, Justin remains deeply grateful:
Bahati Kamara Chance, receives food from MCC partner ECC MERU during the distribution to war-displaced people at the Poste camp in Minova, South Kivu, DRC. She received corn flour, salt, and beans. MCC has been working in DRC since 1960.
“Thank you to MCC for the tremendous work they have invested in… helping many refugees who are stuck and who have no voice. I pray that MCC continues to connect with new sponsors—people with the heart to help. We need them.” With more than 8 million people displaced inside DRC and over 1 million seeking refuge abroad, MCC’s commitment to peace, advocacy and sponsorship offers a lifeline of hope. In addition to supporting refugee sponsorship here in Ontario, MCC is also responding to the humanitarian crisis in DRC with hygiene kits, cash distribution, and long-term livelihood trainings and development projects for those affected by the violence.
