The search is on for a new head of the Community Information and Volunteer Centre, as Glynis Thomas retired at the end of 2015 after a 27-year stint as executive director.
As the agency prepares to put out the call for applications, Thomas reflected on the CIVC’s growth, the incredible dedication that she and her employees put into creating a strong and reputable organization, and the sheer impact that it has made – and continues to make – throughout the community and beyond.
“It is a well-oiled machine. I’m extremely proud!” she said.
The CIVC exists as an information source to help connect residents with vital services and programs but it has also come to prominence as the major hub of volunteer activities. It has acted as the first stop for any organization that needed a volunteer and for people who wanted to volunteer but didn’t know where to start.
It’s one of those things that many people probably take for granted but there would certainly be a major gap in St. Albert life if it weren’t there. Apart from its routine duties of matching people with volunteer openings based on their skills and interests, the CIVC has played a crucial role with numerous other important or large sporting events, councils and conferences that have taken place in the Edmonton area and beyond going back four decades.
For example, it helped to amass several hundred volunteers each for such large events as the International Children’s Festival, the Special Olympics Canada Winter Games, and the 55+ Alberta Winter Games among others.
When the IIHF World Junior Hockey Championships was announced to be held in Edmonton in 2012, Hockey Canada (its organizing body) reached out to the CIVC as there was no agency in the capital city that could undertake the task.
“That kind of story really goes to talk about the reputation of this organization and its people,” said Sandra Fenton, who acted as the chair of the 55+ Games.
“It is a significant organization,” Thomas continued. “It’s one that helps our community critically: it helps our community to be healthy by engaging people. You know that the work you are doing is touching many people and the volunteers were the ones who were making the difference. The true nature of CIVC is people helping people.”
In fact, she added, there’s a multitude of similar volunteer centres across Alberta that seek support from the CIVC for their own programming and operations.
“We have been told numerous, numerous times that we are the best volunteer centre in the province.”
Thomas didn’t just promote volunteerism through her role as the executive director: she also walked the talk. She held high profile organizational volunteer roles with other important or large sporting events, councils and conferences in the Edmonton area and beyond, going back four decades.
Now having stepped away from her position, she is pleased to see how well positioned it is to continue making strides into the future. She praised the organization’s stability and her former team members’ dedication to the common belief of making this city a better place to live.
The search for her replacement is expected to last until the end of February. In the meantime, Pat Phelan has assumed the role of acting executive director. Phelan said that it will be a monumental task to fill Thomas’ shoes but the CIVC is prepared to make sure that the successor has the right fit of a broad spectrum of qualifications, not the least of which are a collaborative spirit and generous people skills.
“We want to get another Glynis,” she said.
