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ENTERPRISE
It won't be long before the Enterprise Senior Society is out in the hamlet, supporting seniors and helping those in need.

Shari Dives, left, and Amy Mercredi, right, are putting the call out to seniors, now that the Enterprise Senior Society is starting to take shape. Dives, the group's interim president, said society is aiming to get seniors actively involved in the hamlet. - Herb Mathisen/NNSL photo

Shari Dives, the interim president, said the organization will pool the resources and talents of the hamlet's senior population to provide a variety of volunteer services in the community.

She estimated the hamlet is home to approximately 25 seniors, adding a group of seven seniors got involved to create the society.

"One of the things that the original seven of us that met (agreed upon) was ensuring that there is no one in our community going hungry or not getting proper meals because of illness or because they are a senior citizen living alone," said Dives.

Working with the hamlet's youth will also be important to the society, she said. A few ex-schoolteachers make up the group's ranks and Dives said they can help youth in a mentorship or tutoring.

The society's first general meeting has been set for Jan. 9 at 1:30 p.m. in the community centre.

Dives said seniors in the hamlet do a lot of travelling and are very flexible, but she added the society is hoping to get the senior population involved in the community.

"Some of us are looking to get that energy directed towards Enterprise," she said.

Dives said the initial meeting will be open to all seniors and will allow them to share their ideas and hopes for the new society. The meeting will also raise the subject of whether or not there should be a membership fee associated with joining the society.

"Within the society's regulations, we can charge a membership fee to cover expenses, but it is totally non-profit," Dives said, adding an election will also eventually be held to determine the society's executive.

Currently, Richard Cadieux is the society's vice-president and Rhonda Flamand is the secretary treasurer.

With its recent incorporation on Sept. 23, society member Amy Mercredi said the organization can apply for government funding for special community projects. A funding proposal has already been submitted for a project on the history of Enterprise. The background for this project, titled Footsteps of Enterprise, will be presented at the society's first meeting.

Mercredi, who wrote up the request for funding proposal, said the society plans to write letters to past residents to encourage them to share their stories about Enterprise's early days. The society will also be collecting photographs and artifacts.

"We are looking to make an information or resource centre that can be used by the community and tourists to know what is going on here," said Mercredi. "It just hangs on that big word 'if'."

Dives suggested that she would also like to co-ordinate events in tandem with the Hay River Seniors' Society.

Mercredi said the society will also give seniors in Enterprise the opportunity to organize events – such as booking the hamlet's van to drive into Hay River for groceries or setting up a pool day – as a collective, instead of individually.

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