BONNYVILLE – A new sign has been placed on the north side of the Bonnyville Senior Citizens Drop-in Centre that honours one of its longest members and greatest volunteers, William McGregor.
The renaming of the centre’s Main Hall was made public at the Seniors Social on June 10 as the Seniors Week festivities came to a close in Bonnyville.
Sherry Hennessey, the current president of the Bonnyville Senior Citizens Society, started by thanking all the volunteers for everything they do to support the centre and community.
“Without our seniors – the pioneers of Alberta – we would not have such a great country, province or town to live in,” said Hennessey. “This building is proof of how dedicated our seniors are. In 1975, the Bonnyville Senior Citizens Society was incorporated, and the original building was built for area seniors to have a place to drop-in and socialize.”
By 1997, plans were made to expand the original structure by adding a bigger hall to the seniors centre. The new addition was given the accurate - but generic - title of the Main Hall.
Now, the Main Hall carries a new name, one with deep meaning and connection to the origin of the building. Moving forward the Main Hall will be officially known as McGregor Hall.
Earlier this year, Willie McGregor celebrated his 100th birthday in the building that now carries his name.
Over the last 100 years, McGregor has accomplished many things. He was a farmer in the Sandy Rapids area, a medic and soldier in WWII, a father and husband – but what he is most known for in the Bonnyville area is his volunteer work and dedication to his community.
“Willie served on the Board of Directors from 1992 to 2015, including 10 years as president,” recounted Hennessey. “Willie played a huge role in getting this addition to the centre. As well as being an active participant, he believed in the benefit of activities and socializing for the well-being of seniors.”
Those who volunteer and spend time at the seniors' drop-in centre have come to call McGregor the “Bonnyville Senior Centre historian,” continued Hennessey.
"The executives, over the years have gone to him to ask questions about the centre. When was this done? Where does that pipe go? How does this thing work? And on and on... without his knowledge we would be lost,” she said.
Board members had made the decision to honour the dedication, hard work, volunteer time and efforts that McGregor has given to the centre during their meeting leading up to the Seniors Social event.
“So tonight, we are dedicating this hall to Willie and renaming it the McGregor Hall,” Hennessey proclaimed.
In the following weeks, a new sign was placed over the drop-in centre’s north door to reflect the new name. The 100-year-old was also provided with a free lifetime membership to the centre.
‘She would have been really proud’
Following the renaming announcement, McGregor told Lakeland This Week, “I’m over 100 [years old] and you don’t see these things coming.”
McGregor and his late wife Lorane each dedicated more than 30 years to the seniors centre. Reflecting on this, he said, “It was quite an honour really, because these things don't happen every day.”
Laughing about receiving a lifetime membership at 100 years old, McGregor quipped, “I guess we’ll see how long we go.”
During the many years McGregor served as president of the Bonnyville Senior Centre, he would head to the centre around 9 a.m. nearly every day and would be there working and socializing until three or four in the afternoon.
“There was always something going on, but I liked it because I had something to do,” he said. “I was a farmer in my working days and we’re always busy. And when I retired, well I had to find something to do so I joined the seniors [in Bonnyville].”
Before McGregor and his wife moved into the Town of Bonnyville, the pair volunteered with the La Corey Seniors Centre.
When the McGregors moved to town, the seniors centre, known as Pioneer Hall at the time, was all there was in the way of social gatherings. Built in 1975, the hall was small and did not afford much room for hosting games and activities.
“There was no real decent building in Bonnyville to have a social or anything because while the Agriplex was there, the C2 [centre] wasn’t there yet and the [Beaver River] Fish and Game Hall wasn't there,” explained McGregor. “We decided that we would try and raise enough money to build it. And we took a couple of years, but we did it.”
It took a lot of effort from the volunteers, but there was mutual understanding from the seniors at the time that if they were going to build something “We’re going to build a good one or not build any,” recalled McGregor.
“I've been in lots of seniors halls all over Alberta and I think we've got one of the better ones,” he noted.
Asked how his wife would have felt to see the family’s namesake on the building, McGregor said, “She would have been really proud to have that named. It’s just too bad too she went a year too soon.” Lorane passed away on Jan. 17, 2022.
For years, Lorane also spent much of her time working tirelessly in the hall’s kitchen catering to help fundraise for the seniors centre.
RELATED STORY: Veteran, Knight, farmer, community leader: Willie McGregor turns 100
