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Wednesday, September 25, 2013
Pelham Cares buys a permanent home BY
WAYNE CAMPBELL
for the VOICE Pelham Cares president Jane Gilmour beamed with delight Friday The community service agency, after 30 years, finally has a permanent home. It purchased The Wine Garden, at 191 Highway 20 E. at Rice Road. It plans to move in on April 1, 2014. Pelham Cares currently leases the former Donut Diner up the road. The lease runs out in 2014. Before moving there, through its 30-year history Pelham Cares ran its food bank, medical ride service and referral operation from rented offices and private homes. Gilmour said the search for a home has been ongoing from the beginning of the organization. “We came so close, so often but things fell through,” she said in recent years it made more than 30 site visits. “Unfortunately, the facilities were too small, not affordable or not accessible.” Gilmour called The Wine Garden site “the perfect
Pelham Cares president Jane Gilmour stands beside a “sold” sign in front of the new home for Pelham Cares, The Wine Garden site at the corner of Regional Road 20 and Rice Road. Owner of the Wine Garden is retiring. Wayne Campbell/Voice Photo size, great location, fully accessible and has the bonus of a desirable rental property included in the building.” The rental will offset mortgage payments, she said. “Although we were not specifically searching for property on Highway 20, we have found that since we have been located at 124 Highway 20 (between Sobey’s and McDonalds), our donations, both food
and monetary, have greatly increased.” People see the Pelham Cares sign. It reminds them to come it to help those in need or to volunteer, she said. Friday’s announcement was the culmination of work begun by Project Pelham Cares, a committee formed in 2008 with the goal of finding a permanent home. “A capital fund was started with significant
support of local service clubs and a substantial sum from the proceeds of the Mayor’s Gala in 2009,” Gilmour said. Pelham Cares has been extremely fortunate to rent the current property but its lease is up in 2014, with no possibility of extension, she said. “This has been the ideal location and size but we are confident in the decision to purchase our own building. This decision
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removes the uncertainty and instability of renting, and allows Pelham Cares to build equity in our own property.” Pelham Cares will continue to use the former Fenwick Fire Hall for sorting and storage of food donations during December following the annual Pelham Food Drive the first Saturday of December. Town council approved its use for this year at last week’s meeting. The new site has storage in the cellar and an elevator to bring up items, she said. It also has a conveyer belt, which will assist distribution of food items. However, it is not large enough for sorting the annual drive donations. Gilmour said now Pelham Cares “can focus its energy on helping those in need and possibly expanding services.” It operates a food bank, provides youth subsidies through Konnecting Kids to those who would not otherwise be able to participate, and coordinates volunteers for medical rides. For more information about Pelham Cares visit the website at www. pelhamcares.org.