In 1991, on the July long weekend, Fred and Alice Duck became residents of Sicamous, BC, where Fred took up his position as the United Church Lay Pastoral Minister. He retired in 2004.
Fred and Alice met on a blind date. Alice told her best friend,” His name is Fred Duck, and if I marry him, I’ll be A. Duck for the rest of my life. – ain’t gonna happen.” Well it did, on June 24, 1977. Between them they had five children, and now have six grandchildren too. They’ve all had lots of fun with the name over the years. In Kamloops they lived on Chukar Drive, along the river, with neighbours John and Jean Crowe, and Della and Jerry Swallow.
While still living in Vancouver, Alice attended the Vancouver School of Art, worked in Display & Advertising for Woodward’s Store, and then taught art in an elementary school. She also became a successful artist. Fred worked in many areas of the Real Estate industry including sales, appraisal, and management.
On December 1, 1977 they moved to Kamloops, where Fred established a mortgage brokerage agency, eventually moving back into real estate sales. Alice managed an arts supply store and a Toys & Wheels store, and then became the administrator for the Kamloops Symphony before joining Fred in the real estate industry.
During their time in Kamloops, they were very involved in the community. Fred was president of the Kamloops Symphony and was instrumental in the creation of the Kamloops Interior Summer School of Music. Alice was on the founding board of the Kamloops Art Gallery, and both are life members. Fred also took on a wedding ministry for Kamloops United Church, sometimes performing as many as four weddings on a Saturday. Once settled in their new home in Sicamous (the original RCMP station), they became involved in their new Shuswap community. Alice is a founding board member of the Eagle Valley Community Support Centre, sat on the board of directors of SASCU for 16 years, was a director with Shuswap Community Foundation and sat on its board for 15 years and is currently on the board of the Salmon Arm Hospice Society. They are both past presidents of Probus Shuswap. Fred is the Sicamous Legion Chaplain, a past president of Salmon Arm Hospice Society, and is currently actively involved with the Royal Canadian Marine Search & Rescue, stationed in Sicamous. Both volunteer in the very successful Sicamous United Church Thrift Store where you will find them every Wednesday morning.
Both Alice and Fred have left a legacy gift to Shuswap Community Foundation in their wills, with instructions that the income they earn be disbursed in the field of the arts, but when they learned of the opportunity to open an endowment fund via the foundation’s ‘Matching Funds’ program, they took it. Their fund is a discretionary fund, so the income it earns will be directed towards grants at the discretion of the foundation’s board of directors.
They decided to do this because, as Fred said, “We’ve been lucky in our lives and don’t want for anything. We want to help support a strong financial foundation for the future of the SCF, in perpetuity.” Alice added, “We did it because it’s a good thing to do, and the foundation is the perfect vehicle to give back to Shuswap communities in the areas most needed.”
Fred and Alice welcome donations into their fund at any time, for any occasion.
“If you don’t thrift shop, you’re a damn fool. It’s good stewardship.” – Fred.