Wingham, Ont. pharmacists leave town multi-million dollar endowment fund
Lee and Thora Vance were institutions on Wingham’s Main Street from 1955-1998, running Vance’s Pharmacy and living above the store, and their impact is still being felt.
“If you needed medication after hours or on a holiday, you could come down here, ring the doorbell, and they’d be right down to fill your prescription. They were just the nicest people you’d ever want to meet,” says Wingham Business Improvement Association Chair Dave Tiffin.
Even though the Vances have passed on, Lee in 2006 and Thora in 2019, they’re continuing to give back to their community.
Before their deaths, the couple set up a $7-million endowment fund for Wingham. The interest, estimated to be between $250,000 and $300,000 a year is to be spent to support education, health care, recreation and Christian churches in Wingham.
“This is one of the most amazing opportunities for any town, anywhere. These people spent their lifetime here and they saved, and they were on the Main Street working six days a week, and helping us out on the the seventh day, when we asked for it. So for them to make a donation like this that will bring in $250,000 to $300,000 a year to be put towards those that need it, is just amazing. We’re so grateful, so grateful,” says Municipality of North Huron Reeve Bernie Bailey.
“When I first heard about this, it kind of made my jaw drop. I mean this amount of money to be given to a community, to go in perpetuity. I mean, it’s going to literally...going on forever. It just doesn’t come along very often. It’s just so fantastic,” says Tiffin.
Tiffin and Bailey are part of a board that will take in applications and decide where the Vance Endowment Fund money will be spent each year. They expect the first grants to be spent in the community in 2022.
“Not many towns will have this opportunity, and we’re just so grateful. But, knowing the folks, it doesn’t really surprise me how generous they were,” says Bailey.
The Lee and Thora Vance Fund is set up through the Kitchener Waterloo Community Foundation.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Air traveller complaints to Canadian Transportation Agency hit new high
The Canadian Transportation Agency has hit a record high of more than 71,000 complaints in a backlog. The quasi-judicial regulator and tribunal tasked with settling disputes between customers and the airlines says the backlog is growing because the number of incoming complaints keeps increasing.
Orca calf that was trapped in B.C. lagoon for weeks swims free
An orca whale calf that has been stranded in a B.C. lagoon for weeks after her pregnant mother died swam out on her own early Friday morning.
AFN chief says Air Canada offered a 15% discount after her headdress was mishandled
After the Assembly of First Nations' national chief complained to Air Canada about how staffers treated her and her ceremonial headdress on a flight this week, she says the airline responded by offering a 15 per cent discount on her next flight.
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau on navigating post-political life, co-parenting and freedom
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau says there is 'still so much love' between her and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, as they navigate their post-separation relationship co-parenting their three children.
DEVELOPING Bird flu outbreaks: WHO weighs in on public health risk
The current overall public health risk posed by the H5N1 bird flu virus is low, the World Health Organization said on Friday, but urged countries to stay alert for cases of animal-to-human transmission.
76ers All-Star centre Joel Embiid says he has Bell's palsy
Philadelphia 76ers All-Star centre Joel Embiid has been diagnosed with Bell’s palsy, a form of facial paralysis he says has affected him since before the play-in tournament.
Island near Mull of Kintyre for sale for US$3.1 million
An idyllic 453-acre private island is up for sale off the west coast of Scotland and it comes with sandy beaches, puffins galore, seven houses, a pub, a helipad and a flock of black-faced sheep.
King Charles' cancer treatment progressing well, says Buckingham Palace
King Charles III’s doctors are 'sufficiently pleased' with his cancer treatment and he is expected to return to public-facing duties, Buckingham Palace announced on Friday.
Flight attendant indicted in attempt to record teen girl in airplane bathroom
An American Airlines flight attendant was indicted Thursday after authorities said he tried to secretly record video of a 14-year-old girl using an airplane bathroom last September.