PARRSBORO – The Parrsboro Youth Centre asked for a heat pump, and now it has one.
The volunteer-operated facility, which opened last month on Main Street, now has the necessary equipment to heat the building in the winter and keep it cool in the summer, thanks to a donation from the Cumberland South Liberal Association. Cumberland South Liberal candidate Kenny John Jackson visited the facility on Sept. 7 to make the presentation.
“We know how important it is for the youth to have a place to go and feel comfortable,” said Jackson. “We have a facility in Springhill at the community centre – a teen centre – and, as community relations officer with the Springhill police, I see a difference in kids coming off the streets and enjoying themselves. I spoke to Dal Hutchinson here, we have sort of the same job, and he has seen the same thing.”
The heat pump is a suitable option for the youth centre because it’s energy-efficient and affordable, explained Tom Brown, one of the volunteers who led the effort to create the youth centre.
“Compared to the price of oil, and wood, with all that labour, I just think this is the cheaper way to go,” said Brown. “I have one in my house, and it’s great. They’ve come a long way from the first ones they built.”
Jackson attended the official opening of the youth centre when he first heard the public plea for the donation of a heat pump. He said he started searching and asking around, eventually finding a unit at Harrison’s that the association agreed to purchase.
Looking around the centre, which has been well utilized by local youth in its first month of operation, he said the cause was a worthy one.
“It’s comfortable, a beautiful place with games and movies, a great place for them to come and socialize with new friends and old friends,” he said. “We’re more than happy to donate a heat pump, and I’m sure it will be put to good use.”
