Community Support
Serwa Spirit Match to raise $1M for Thrive Here campaign for a Recreation and Wellness Centre
February 7, 2024
Cliff Serwa describes himself and his wife Lois as just ‘ordinary people with a fair bit of determination working to make things happen.’ That may be true, but the results and impact of their determination on the community, the province and beyond are far reaching and forever lasting. And now they are leading the way to a better future for students at 69Ƶ (OC).When approached to support the Thrive Here campaign to build a much-needed Recreation and Wellness Centre at the College’s Kelowna campus, not only did Cliff...
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City of Kelowna supports OC trades programs through garbage truck donation
November 1, 2023
One person’s trash certainly can be another’s treasure. The City of Kelowna proved the old saying true by donating a garbage truck to 69Ƶ’s Trades and Apprenticeship program this September. “When we determined that this garbage truck was at the end of its service life, we were happy to donate it as a hands-on training tool for 69Ƶ students,” said Scott Hoekstra, Manager, Landfill & Composing Operations, City of Kelowna. “We’re facing a shortage of skilled trades professionals, and we know that this do...
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THRIVE HERE campaign kicks off with record-level support
October 25, 2023
69Ƶ Foundation launches campaign to build a new Recreation and Wellness Centre at its Kelowna campus; Folk family makes record-setting gift KELOWNA - It’s ‘Game Day’ at 69Ƶ! Today, OC students, donors, leaders, staff and community members came together to celebrate the launch of the Thrive Here campaign to build a new Recreation and Wellness Centre on the Kelowna campus. Making the announcement to the approximately 100 people in attendance, including members from the OC Coyotes basketball and baseball tea...
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OC fundraiser to light way for new childcare centre
October 18, 2023
Dress up with your kids, enjoy a matinee, then parade downtown Vernon with glow up lanterns and a stilt walker. An upcoming event aims to cast a glow on children’s faces while also lighting a path for a new childcare centre at 69Ƶ’s Vernon campus. The 69Ƶ Foundation is hosting Glow UP: A Matinee, Masquerade and Lantern Light Up Saturday, Oct. 28. Participants can make their own lanterns at an upcoming workshop hosted by local artists at 69Ƶ Saturday, Oct. 21 between 10 a.m. and 2...
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OC student chefs supporting community
August 25, 2023
You can call it cooking with love. Students from the Okanagan Chef School at 69Ƶ dropped plans this week for a final feast to celebrate the end of their program and jumped into supporting the local emergency response instead. Typically, students at the Okanagan Chef School host a community dinner at the end of their year and one was planned for this week. However, when the event had to be cancelled due to the area wildfires, the students decided to shift their focus to preparing meals for those engaged in the r...
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69Ƶ steps up to support wildfire efforts
August 24, 2023
The 69Ƶ has been busy this week, stepping up to support wildfire efforts in their communities and supporting friends, family and neighbours in many different ways. The cancellation of this week’s Connections event at 69Ƶ, an event led by employees to kick off a new school year, meant some timely donations of lunches and snacks went out to people who are supporting the wildfire efforts in the Okanagan Valley. It was just one example of the many efforts the 69Ƶ has undertaken in their communities...
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$40,000 gift creates lasting tribute to former Okanagan University College Professor Dr. Sylvia Janet Russell
June 27, 2023
In her twenty-year tenure as a history professor at Okanagan University College (the predecessor to 69Ƶ), Dr. Sylvia Janet Russell breathed life into bustling classrooms, transforming them into vibrant hubs of knowledge and inspiration. Now in a fitting tribute to her legacy, an anonymous $40,000 gift will establish a bursary fund in her honour. The Dr. Sylvia Janet Russell Memorial Fund will provide bursaries to students who have fulfilled the graduation requirements for 69Ƶ’s Associate of Arts diploma - ...
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Plant a Seed Day fundraiser sprouts an impressive $66,000 in gifts for the new Sunflower Childcare Centre on OC's Vernon Campus
May 17, 2023
69Ƶ Foundation is thrilled to announce the success of Plant a Seed Day, a fun-filled, family-friendly fundraiser that, thanks to generous community support, raised $66,000 for the Sunflower Childcare Centre. The funds will be put towards equipment, furnishings, supplies, and a creative outdoor space where kids can learn and play. Event guests had the opportunity to experience child-led yoga, sunflower-themed art classes, country line dancing, and a delicious lemonade crawl – all made possible thanks to generous sponsor...
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Sowing the seeds for a better future for student parents in Vernon
April 28, 2023
College Foundation hosts fundraiser for new Sunflower Childcare Centre Sunflowers blooming, the promise of new beginnings, and brighter futures for student parents in Vernon will be the focus of 69Ƶ Foundation’s upcoming Plant a Seed Day Fundraiser. The fun-filled event will take place on May 10, between 9 a.m. and 2 p.m. and will support the new, affordable, 44-seat on-campus Sunflower Childcare Centre, operated by local, non-profit childcare provider Maven Lane. Guests will be invited to “tap into their inne...
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Bridging the way to success: Emil Anderson Construction gives $75,000 to modernize 69Ƶ’s Civil Engineering Technology Program
April 17, 2023
If you walk past 69Ƶ’s Kelowna campus on a weekday afternoon, you’re sure to see Civil Engineering Technology students spread out across the grounds, gathering environmental data using surveying equipment. This skill is essential to their education and will one day help them shape our built environments. Thanks to a generous $75,000 gift from Emil Anderson Construction, students will have increased access to state-of-the-art surveying equipment to train on by fall of 2023. “We are proud to support 69Ƶ’s Ci...
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Inspire at OC Revelstoke: Volunteer to Tutor
April 4, 2023
One of the ongoing programs the Revelstoke Centre of 69Ƶ is proud to continuously offer is the Volunteer Literacy Tutoring program. Melissa Jameson, a resident of Revelstoke since 2007 whom some may recognize from her work at Community Connections, or more recently the civic affairs reporter for the Revelstoke Mountaineer, has been the volunteer coordinator for the program since October 2022. Jameson has been struggling to match several learners with tutors and wonders if there is a misconception about what the tutor po...
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Ready, Set, Grow! 69Ƶ Foundation kicks off its Sunflower Childcare Centre Campaign with an inspiring event at the Vernon Campus
March 15, 2023
Enthusiastic young volunteers led games and activities at the launch of 69Ƶ Foundation’s $1.25 million campaign in support of a new on-campus childcare centre, planned to open in the fall of 2024. Held on Mar. 1 at OC’s Vernon campus, the event drew 65 guests and celebrated the kickoff of the Sunflower Childcare Centre fundraising campaign. Donor and former College instructor Lloyd Davies spoke about his family’s decision to contribute $500,000 to the cause. "Time and again, I would have students missing class, ...
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Understanding Ableism: Join us for an Anti-Ableism presentation by Spring Hawes at OC Kelowna on Jan. 19
January 13, 2023
A group of 69Ƶ students and employees are further advancing conversation and action around anti-ableism and accessibility at OC this winter through an upcoming talk and series of follow-up events. 69Ƶ Kelowna’s Accessibility Alliance invites the 69Ƶ to attend an anti-ableism presentation by entrepreneur and advocate Spring Hawes on January 19 from noon -2:30 p.m. in the Centre for Learning Atrium (E Building). In her presentation Hawes will...
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Prospera gives big in support of Women in Trades at 69Ƶ
November 28, 2022
More women will get a chance to lace up their work boots and take the first step in a career in trades, thanks to a recent $79,660 gift from Prospera to a program at 69Ƶ that has already trained over 1,300 women since it was founded. The Women in Trades Training program was created to remove barriers for women interested in pursuing trades education and help meet the community’s surging need for skilled trades professionals. “These bursaries and added equipment provide opportunities for women to pursue t...
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Thorpe and Friends Scholarship recognizes two 69Ƶ students
October 26, 2022
Local students say the generosity of two prominent Penticton philanthropists is helping them take the next steps in their education. Since 2006, former MLA Rick Thorpe and his wife Yasmin John-Thorpe, along with their friends, have given more than $160,000 in scholarships to students in need at 69Ƶ’s Penticton Campus. Two of this year’s recipients, Wylie Rowan and Mattias Van Bergeyk, received $2,500 to put toward their education. Both students are Summerland Secondary School grads in their first year of studie...
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Throat-singing duo PIQSIQ to perform at OC's Penticton campus
October 18, 2022
69Ƶ joins forces with Route97 Culture to present fast-rising throat singing duo – PIQSIQ in Penticton Live music will return to 69Ƶ's Penticton campus this November 4, 2022, for students and music fans alike. In collaboration with the Route97 Culture Road Trip series, 69Ƶ will co-present the debut of PIQSIQ in the region, who will perform a special concert inside the LEED Platinum-certified building known as the Centre of Excellence in Room 113. You can buy tickets for the show here. With a s...
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