POP Celebrates 50 Years in Operation!

Porcupine Opportunities Program is celebrating our 50th year of operation in 2024! We held our 50th Anniversary celebration on September 6, 2024 at the Community Hall, and a great time was had by all.

We would like to thank our speakers: Tracy Slobodian (MC); Hugh Nerlien, MLA; Nick Wood, Mayor of Porcupine Plain; Melanie Weiss, SARC; Jason Kockay, Weyerhaeuser; Karl Galindez, Prayer Baptist Church.

From our beginnings in 1974 to our daily operations today, POP has been built by a great number of individuals that worked to get us here. We are so thankful for the parents and community members that filled the space in our community for individuals that would benefit from support, as well as the staff and residents that continue our story in the present day.

Porcupine Opportunities Program has grown to be an integral part of the local communities of Porcupine Plain and Hudson Bay, and we could not have done it without the following individuals:

Thank you to all of our current and past staff, residents, and families for playing such an important role in POP’s history.

Cheers to 50 years!

POP Celebrates 50 Years in Operation!

Community Initiatives Fund logo

Each summer, the clients and staff of POP spend five days out at Rex Mundi Camp (Marean Lake, SK). We always look forward to this week filled with laughter, fun, and relaxation. However, this year was special – thanks to Community Initiatives Fund (CIF).

Aside from nightly campfires, delicious food, and entertaining outdoor games all week long, we were able to bring in special guests two days in a row. First was Danny Kazam, a magician and entertainer from Southern Saskatchewan. Danny brought fun and laughter with audience involvement on and off stage, and belly laughs for everyone in the room!

Second was the Dancing Horse Dance Troupe, a family group that shared their teachings through storytelling, song, and dance. Harold Littletent and his troupe kept our audience enthralled in Cree teachings about the significance of the dances we were witnessing, the lands we live on, and the intricacies of the clothing on the dancers’ backs.

Our final night was rounded out with a Tiki Bar – complete with mocktails, near-beers, and socializing! We are so grateful to CIF for their support of our week at camp, and a huge thank you to the special guests that came out to spend time with us!

Camp Marean Lake

POP Cabin Front

POP is hosting a fundraising raffle! The grand prize is an 18′ × 10′ She Shed (or will it be a He Shed?), valued at $7800. The OSB for this shed was donated by Weyerhaeuser in Hudson Bay, and the shed itself was built by the Construction 20/30 class at Porcupine Plain Comprehensive School.

The proceeds for this fundraiser will be used towards the new Transit Bus, as well as some outdoor items for our Day Program. Tickets can be purchased from staff or board members, our main office, as well as the following locations within our community:

The draw date is June 24, 2024!

Fundraising Raffle for POP Day Program

Porcupine Opportunities Program Inc. (POP) is pleased to announce that it has received $805,000 in funding from the Government of Canada for renovation and expansion of its industrial wood workshop in Porcupine Plain. The federal investment, by Prairies Economic Development Canada (PrairiesCan), is through its Community Economic Development and Diversification (CEDD) program. CEDD supports economic development initiatives that contribute to the economic growth and diversification of communities across the Prairie provinces.

Construction and renovation is set to begin in the early fall of 2022 with an anticipated completion time of late spring 2023.

POP is a community-based and governed organization dedicated to enhancing the quality of life of persons experiencing disability. In operation since 1974, the agency provides residential, vocational, and employment supports and services to over 30 adults experiencing intellectual and/or physical disabilities. Services are provided in Porcupine Plain and Hudson Bay.

“Porcupine Opportunities Program is thankful that PrairiesCan recognized the importance of this project to the individuals we support, our agency, and our community as a whole,” said General Manager, Marilyn Jonas. “We are grateful for this opportunity and excited to expand our vocational opportunities through this investment.”

The investment will support the renovation of POP’s existing 4200 square foot workshop which was built in 1985 as part of the agency’s vocational program. Originally, the shop supported the production of core boxes for mining exploration. This work continues with the production of over 30,000 boxes per year. Over the past several years POP has also added production of dunnage, for the lumber industry to its scope of business. This work involves using waste lumber to manufacture strips of wood that are strapped to the bottom of lifts of lumber. The strips, or dunnage, facilitate movement of the lifts using a forklift or loader. The agency is now producing close to 600,000 pieces of dunnage and has added additional staff to support this work. Increased space and updates to the infrastructure of the shop and its equipment are required to support and sustain both core box and dunnage production moving forward.

“Our government recognizes that community-based organizations like the Porcupine Opportunities Program are critical for providing vocational and employment opportunities for persons with disabilities,” said Daniel Vandal, Minister for PrairiesCan. “This Program is a wonderful asset to the community and we are proud to support it.”

The funding from PrairiesCan will add an additional 3500 square feet of working space as well as support renovation and updating of the existing workshop. Included in the project will be the addition of a specialized area for the manufacture of a variety of small wood projects for sale including: benches and chairs, planters, bird houses, games, and much more. This new work area will provide opportunity for some participants who are less mobile, or need a quieter work area, to participate in the workshop activities. In addition to the extra space, the investment will support an update in electrical services, a new sawdust vacuum system, and some specialized wood working equipment.

Porcupine Opportunities Program Receives Funding for Expanded Workshop

Grand opening of Porcupine Opportunities Program gift store and full service laundromat

The grand opening of Porcupine Opportunities Program (POP) new gift store and full service laundromat was held on Tuesday, October 8, 2019.

The new gift store, named “Bits n’ Pieces”, features hand-crafted products consigned by local and regional crafters as well as various items produced as part of the agency’s vocational programs. The store already has over 40 consigners marketing a wide variety of products. POP’s laundromat has been renovated, and now offers a variety of new services including: staff support Monday to Friday; a custom laundry service; a barber shop each Wednesday; and a small confectionary. Most recently POP has added “light mending” (hemming, buttons, and patches) to the service package.

The new services mark the expansion of POP’s supported employment program, which provides employment opportunities to individuals experiencing disability. Currently, 9 individuals are working at the store and laundromat in various roles that fit with their interests and abilities.

In addition to the introduction of the new services and employment opportunities, POP also recognized local businesses that are providing employment to individuals supported by the agency. They include: the Royal Canadian Mounted Police; Parkland Co-op; Caroline’s Restaurant; Quilly Willy Early Learning and Childcare Centre; and Blair’s Funeral Home in Porcupine Plain as well as Lewellin’s Sales and Service and the Modeon Theatre in Hudson Bay.

POP thanks our partner businesses for their on-going role in supported employment. We also thank the community at large for all the support and enthusiasm they are showing for our newest venture!

POP Expands Supported Employment Program Through Gift Store and Laundromat Service

Porcupine Opportunities Program (POP) is celebrating its 45th year of operation in 2019. As we reflected on this, we felt it was important to recognize the individuals that helped to make the organization a success over almost five decades of operations.

POP was initially started in 1974 by a group of parents who wished to provide an opportunity for their children who were experiencing disabilities to live and work in or near their homes.

With their own money and donations from the community, the group purchased 27 acres of land on the south side of Porcupine Plain and moved a two room school house to the site. They set up a working area in one room, storage and administration in the second room, and a small woodworking shop in the basement. This formed POP’s infrastructure to start providing services and support to nine individuals.

Initial operations at POP were largely built around income from Canada Manpower grants while other income came from building grain bins for local farmers and the Coop. The beginnings of what would later become the main revenue source for the agency, core box production for mining companies, was also established. However; without a steady operating revenue the organization was starting to falter by the end of the 1970s.

In 1983, Carl Kwiatkowski, POP’s manager, orchestrated the transition from the parent group to a community based Board of Directors, with base operating revenue provided by the Provincial government through the Ministry of Social Services. Over two dozen organizations were represented at the initial meetings with some groups agreeing to sit on the Board, and others offering support.

Over the years, financial circumstances and changes in local organizations gradually reduced the number of organizations involved in the agency. Currently, only the town of Hudson Bay and the RM of Kelvington still appoint Board members, while all other Board members are appointed at large.

From those early beginnings POP continued to grow and expand its programming. Key milestones included:

Today, Porcupine Opportunities Program Inc. has grown to be an integral part of the local communities in Porcupine Plain and Hudson Bay. The agency currently supports approximately 30 participants, supported by 60 full and part-time staff.

Programming for participants continues to evolve and now includes: two day programs (Porcupine Plain and Hudson Bay), a seniors program, and an expanded workshop which produces core boxes for the mining sector, dunnage for the lumber industry, and various outdoor furniture, planters and other wood products for the public. Most recently the agency has expanded its supported employment program with the expansion of service in its laundromat and through a new gift store that features products produced by local and regional artisans.

As the agency celebrates its 45th anniversary, it would like to recognize the individuals that have provided leadership to the agency through POP’s volunteer Board of Directors over the past decades. They have given their time, energy and commitment to help bring the agency to where it is today.

Thank you… to all of you!

Parent Group: Anne and Mike Kuzek, Sophie and Nick Kwiatkowski, Mavis and Mike Belchamber, Audrey and Don Leepart, Elsie and Joe Dobrowski, Mable and Fred Seafoot, Phillipena and Herman Heine, Kathy and James Jamieson, and Marg Kraft.

Porcupine Opportunities Program First Board of Directors: Fred Seafoot, Herman Heine, Anne Kuzek, Mike Kuzek, Nick Kwiatkowski, Jim Jamieson and Kathy Jamieson. Other individuals from the community also contributed to the board. These included: John and Dorothy Gunderson, Merlin and Elaine Olson, and Marie Szydlowski.

Board Representatives from Community Organizations

* Current Board Members

“May what we accomplished together provide a lasting thank you!”

Porcupine Opportunities Program Inc. acknowledges the privilege and honour of sharing Treaty Six Territory, the traditional lands of the Cree, Dene, Saulteaux, Nakota, Ojibway, and the homeland of the Metis Nation Eastern Region 11.

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There may be times where information may be shared with selected third parties who are acting on behalf of Porcupine Opportunities Program Inc. as agents, supplier, or service providers. These third-party services will be given the least amount of information possible as is necessary to complete the task and will only retain such information to the fulfillment of their purpose.

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