Friends of Madge Lake hold grand opening

The Friends of Madge Lake specialty store located in the Duck Mountain Provincial Park held a grand opening celebration on August 5.

Although the morning was cool and damp, over 100 residents of Madge Lake and Friends of Madge Lake members, joined the board of directors to officially open the Heritage Cabin Specialty Store.  

Coffee, cake and good wishes were shared by those in attendance and messages were given by Patti Hack, chair of the Friends board, Terry Dennis, Canora-Pelly MLA and Greg Podovinnikoff, park manager. 

“The cabin is a wonderful addition to Madge Lake and has been an overwhelming success run entirely by volunteers,” Hack said. “It is open daily from 10 to 4 and is stocked with ice cream, popcorn and pop to serve the Ministik beach-goers. Hundreds of artisan wares, pickles and preserves, natural beauty products, photographs, jewelry, and hoodies fill the shelves for souvenir and gift shoppers. 

“It well serves its purpose as a gift store and beach concession, and it also acts as a headquarters for the newly organized Friends of Madge Lake association,” she said.

Hack thanked all those that helped to make the cabin a success. “First and foremost to Greg Podovinnikoff and his team that work so cooperatively with us. We are so lucky to have such a strong administration with such devoted staff in our park. 

“Thanks to Robert Ritchie and Madge Lake Developments, and to the Cabin Owners Association, both having given us $2000 seed money to begin to structure our organization. “Thank you to the many people who donated furnishings or items to sell in the store; to the Lukey family for the donation of our storage shed, and to Deb Mandzuk at Chautauqua Gardens for all the beautiful flowers.

“Thank you to the vendors who share their talents and crafts with us to sell at the store which makes the store a beautiful place. And a special thanks to all of the volunteers that have stepped up and taken a shift or multiple shifts at the cabin. Working at the cabin as a volunteer makes us feel like the cabin belongs to us all; to the community of Madge Lake. It is such an enjoyable way to spend three hours and you get a chance to meet others that love this lake.”   

Hack encouraged those that haven’t taken out a Friends membership yet to do so online at www.friendsofmadgelake.ca or at the cabin so they can have a voice as to where the funds from memberships and the store will be channeled.  “But for today, let’s just eat cake and celebrate the success of this cabin,” she said.

 MLA Terry Dennis congratulated Friends on their success and thanked them for their hard work to make Madge Lake a better place.

 Greg Podovinnikoff told the crowd that he was so pleased to have this organization operating in the park and adding to the beauty and amenities the park has to offer, and thanked them for their hard work and dedication.

The program concluded with Dennis, on behalf of the province, Podovinnikoff, on behalf of the park, and Nancy Welykholowa, on behalf of the Friends board of directors, cutting the ribbon and officially opening the cabin that is expected to serve Madge Lake for many years.