For the past 20 years, I have worked alongside volunteers, learning their stories and seeing their commitment to making MCC the organization it is today. You are our lifeline to bring peace, development and relief to less-fortunate areas through your hard work and unyielding devotion. From receiving, to many production areas, to retail folks, truck driving and every job between, we could not do what we do without you.
In today’s economic climate, it is not lost on us how fortunate we are to have so many people offering up their time to volunteer with us. Your contributions help local initiatives in our communities from partner organizations with local shelters, churches
and programs that work with newcomers, people struggling with homelessness, and various other enterprises. Globally, MCC can have the impact it does because of all that you do.
National Volunteer Appreciation Week is from April 27 to May 3, and words cannot properly express the amount of gratitude we feel for all your hard work. Let your shop staff teams spoil you rotten this week as you deserve all the good things life has to offer.
On behalf of the Ontario network—thank you!
Karla Musselman
Thrift Coordinator
We welcome our new volunteer who started with us recently!
Austin Sanche
Charlie Williams
Blake Powell
Justin Nelsom
Simon Livingston
Jennifer Dassie
Volunteer Openings
• Retail Floor Support: Volunteers needed to assist with tidying up the store
Monday mornings 8 a.m. to 12 p.m.
Monday afternoons 1 p.m. to 5 p.m.
Saturday mornings from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. and afternoons from 1 to 5 p.m.
• Cashier: No experience needed
Friday mornings from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. or afternoons from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m.
Saturday mornings from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.
• Clothing Sorters: Do you enjoy fashion? Have an eye for labels and trends? We are looking for volunteers to do clothing sorting.
Monday afternoons from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m.
Tuesday mornings from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. or Tuesday afternoons from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m.
Friday mornings from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. and afternoons from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m.
• Receivers: Greet our valued donors at the back door to accept goods. Good customer service required. Shifts available:
Monday afternoons 1 p.m. to 5 p.m.
Tuesday afternoons 1 p.m. to 5 p.m.
Friday mornings 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.
May
Cheryl Bender
Elaine Vandenhoff
Susan Stevens
Sandra Gerber
Ralph Jeanes
Sheila Nafziger
Ken Seltzer
Carol Brownridge
Lorrie Baechler
Larry Wagler
Amzie Brubacher
Marilyn Steinmann
Carol Cook
Merv Ropp
Cathy Downer
Helen Wallace
Pierrette Schmidt
BIRTHDAYS
Ellen Cober
Connie Zehr
Willard Bretz
Anne Straus
Sarah Henhoeffer
Marilyn Cressman
Owen Cook
Patricia Desjardine
Gisele St John
Florence Snyder
Ellen Vriezen
Karen Baechler
Patricia Gerber
Jenny Neubauer
Jan Burmaster
Susan Cressman
Ron Albrecht
Karen Shinn
Clothing
Clothing
Clothing – Sorting
Books
Recycling – Metal
Cashier
Clothing – Sorting
Clothing – Support
Recycling – Metal
Toys – Stuffies
Retail Floor Support
Clothing – Hanging
Pictures
Housewares – Sorting
Linens – Sorting
Retail Floor Support
Housewares – Support
Toys – Sorter
Housewares – Support
Crafts
Seasonal – All Seasons
Around the Shop
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!
We will be holding our next TAB workshop on Tuesday, May 6, 2025, from 1:30 PM to 4:00 PM on Zoom. If you are interested in attending, please register here (mcc.zoom.us/meeting/register/luCR83gEQPOZmuSB83f5A#/registration)
A blessing for our volunteers
Watch the video as a longtime MCC volunteer shares a meaningful prayer—a meaningful reminder of the care and commitment behind every act of service. Thank you for all that you do.
From Simulation to Orchard: Rockway Students Plant Seeds of Real Change
Your work is supporting peace, climate and the next generation of leaders right here in our community!
What began as a classroom role-playing exercise about managing a climate crisis budget turned into something real—and rooted—at Rockway Mennonite Collegiate. “We thought, ‘what if instead of asking them to manage hypothetical money in hypothetical roles, we gave them some actual money?’” says Ken Ogasawara of MCC’s Canadian Advocacy Network.
“When MCC offered us real money to do something, it got serious,” said Oliver Berg, a Grade 11 student. “There was a bunch of ideas. We thought maybe some rewilding. But then Mr. Penny [teacher] and Julia [fellow student] were wondering how can we incorporate the community and a social element?”
Then, students will learn harvest and preserve the fruit, connecting with Mennonite traditions of canning and food sharing. They plan to donate some of the produce to local food banks, addressing food insecurity while caring for the earth.
Mr. Penny, the teacher leading the Youth Leading Change initiative at Rockway, said he was initially hesitant about the orchard idea. “I said to them, ‘you’ll graduate before these trees bear fruit.” But he saw the wisdom of planning (and planting) for the long term.
Ken Ogasawara from MCC (far right) presents a cheque for $800 to students at Rockway Mennonite Collegiate to kick-start what is turning into a school-wide, multi-year climate action project.
The idea that stuck was an orchard.
“Mr. Pauls, our enviro-social teacher, first suggested the orchard, I think,” said Julia Abicht, a student who has taken a lead role in organizing the initiative. “We realized how an orchard would really diversify the benefits… It’s not just impacting the environment, but also our community at Rockway and the surrounding community, too.”
The fruit isn’t the only benefit of this project.
“We’ve also had conversations about turning it into more of a student space as well,” says Gem Morlock another Grade 11 student. “Students or people from the community can go somewhere and be surrounded by Nature and have a space to relax or learn.”
Rockway’s project is part of MCC’s “Youth Leading Change: Community Peacebuilding Certificate,” where students are encouraged to learn, act and transform their communities through peacebuilding. They are aiming to break ground on the orchard this spring! For information, write to communications@mcco.ca.
