Powell River Academy of Music has always run on the generous support of community volunteers. A group known as the Dream Team, ranging in age from 22 to 86, meets each Wednesday to help build, maintain and repair anything requiring attention at the academy.
“They fix everything and keep us going,” said Academy of Music administrator Carrie Lanigan.
A majority of Dream Team members are retired Catalyst Paper Corporation employees and singers from Chor Musica, the academy men’s choir.
“There were a host of volunteers right from day one and through a number of events, but the Dream Team became organized later on,” said team member Dal Matterson.
The team boasts a wide range of expertise with retired engineers, electricians, pipe fitters and millwrights among its members, including Doug Mobley, who started out as a nuclear physicist and brings computer expertise to the team.
“Doug’s like MacGyver,” said volunteer Harvey Allison, referring to Mobley’s ability to solve problems.
Dream Team members built and designed all the monitoring equipment for the academy building’s power supply, according to volunteer Mel Low, who formally organized the group. Certified tradespeople are brought in for larger projects, but members handle general labour and design.
“The academy is growing by leaps and bounds,” said Low.
Harold Tuck, 86, is the eldest member of the group.
“We’re doing this for the benefit of the community,” said Tuck. “It’s our way of paying the community back.”
The group always welcomes new members and encourages younger people to join.
“We would like to have some more 22-year-olds,” said volunteer Pat Lemna. “Even 42 or 52 would be nice.”
One of the group’s big accomplishments in recent years was building a new dance studio for Lazlo Tamasik Dance Academy.
“We built them a new studio with a sprung floor,” said Low. “The dance teachers and the facilities are above and beyond.”
Dream Team volunteers meet once per week, but many projects are taken home and worked on in members’ workshops. During a Kathaumixw year such as this one, the group works full time during the festival and in the weeks leading up to and following the event. The number of volunteers also increases at that time.
“This academy, if you looked at what it would cost to maintain it without the volunteers, it would probably shut down,” said academy manager Valerie Thompson.
Another weekly tradition is the 10 am coffee break. Low’s wife Romi, who also works at the academy, always bakes the team a cake.
“It’s a great team, like a family,” said Allison. “And we get a different cake every week.”
