FRTA Donates to McMan

Left to Right:  Saskia Knight ( Director of Development, Marketing & Communications, McMan), Karin Matthiessen (Director of Services, McMan), Soraya Saliba (Executive Director, McMan), Fran Porter (Foothills Retired Teachers Association), Joyce Loucks (President, Foothills Retired Teachers Association)

An organization whose original mandate was to bring about positive societal change, McMan was founded in 1975 by four graduates of Grant MacEwan College. Their names were Nora McNamara, John Meston, Jim Allers, and Rick Newcombe. They decided that their organization’s name would be the first letter—or the first two in Nora’s case—of each of their last names, and that was how McMan was born. Its first venture was to open a group home in the inner-city area of Edmonton. Offering housing and support to young people in trouble, the home’s clientele expanded, along with the mission and the vision. Since then, McMan has evolved into a multi-regional body serving Alberta by offering a variety of services that respond to the needs of local communities.

This year, the McMan branch in Okotoks was the recipient of half of the $500.00 that our Foothills Retired Teachers’ Association annually donates to worthy causes within our school district. FRTA member Fran Porter suggested McMan, recommending the donation be made during the annual August ‘Rogers Birdies for Kids’ program. This program, designed to help raise new funds for local charities, matches by 50% all donations made to the charities on its list. And McMan was one of those charities.

Our FRTA donation will help McMan deal more effectively with the various community needs it addresses such as addiction, homelessness, poverty, disability, and mental health issues. It offers 12-week courses in Dialectical Behaviour Therapy, a widely recognized treatment for those dealing with feelings of hopelessness. It locates housing for youth on the street. It helps struggling families find motivation by providing them with the services and supports that make the difference between merely existing and learning to thrive.

McMan employees are most grateful for our efforts to assist their work. They encourage all willing and able people to get involved with the organization by donating or volunteering or both. Their second annual Charity Golf Tournament, held in mid-September, was a great success this past year, and they look forward to the 2025 event where participants get to play golf, have fun, and assist a worthy cause at the same time!

Next year will mark the 50th anniversary of McMan’s existence. What a long way it has come since those four graduates opened that first group home back in 1975! And we at FRTA are proud to have played some small part in helping the organization continue its philanthropic journey.