Local 196 members contribute to major donation to Edmonton NorQuest College

From left: NorQuest board member Brian Hjlesvold; Roberta Hykawy, IBEW 1007; Laura Manz, AMNUA; Joy Arntzen, UNA; NorQuest President Jodi Abbott; Bud McCarthy, Edmonton Firefighters; Brenda Waluk, CEMA; Mike Scott, CUPE 30; and Edmonton Mayor Don Iveson.

The Edmonton Civic Employees Charitable Fund, which UNA Local 196 members along with eight other unions and associations contribute to through monthly donations, has made a $2-million gift to NorQuest College. 

As a result of the donation, the college’s Heritage Tower has been renamed the Civic Employees Legacy Tower. 

The announcement, made on January 16 at NorQuest’s downtown Edmonton campus, is the largest gift in the fund’s 77-year history. The fund represents the charitable efforts of more than 11,000 employees from the nine unions and associations, including the community health nurses of Local 196.

Local 196 President Joy Arntzen called the donation “a major milestone for the fund and our members as we are committed to making a difference in the Edmonton community.” 

“Education is a basic right and this investment in the future creates a legacy for members and their families to come,” Arntzen said.

The upgrades in the main NorQuest building are part of the college’s $20-million Maximizing Opportunities fund-raising initiative, which includes an extensive scholarship and bursary program, and a campus expansion in downtown Edmonton.

The publicly funded community college was established by the government of Alberta as the Alberta Vocational College in 1965 with the primary objective of providing untrained and under-employed Albertans with opportunities to join an industrialized workforce. The college serves close to 18,000 students a year throughout the province in full-time, part-time distance learning and regional programs.

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