New Horizons for Seniors Call for Proposals
Are you a retired or semi-retired community member looking for a meaningful way to share your skills, experience, and passions?
The Avon River Heritage & Culture Centre is exploring ideas for a new project through the New Horizons for Seniors Program, making use of our museum and Avon Spirit Shipyard as spaces for learning, creativity, and community connection.
We know our community is filled with talented people who have a wealth of knowledge to share. Whether you have an idea for a workshop, mentoring program, heritage project, social activity, or something entirely unique, we'd love to hear from you.
Have an idea you'd like to see brought to life? Submit your proposal for consideration by July 1, 2026.
Let's work together to create new opportunities for seniors to connect, learn, contribute, and make a lasting impact in our community.
The Avon River Heritage & Culture Centre is exploring ideas for a new project through the New Horizons for Seniors Program, making use of our museum and Avon Spirit Shipyard as spaces for learning, creativity, and community connection.
We know our community is filled with talented people who have a wealth of knowledge to share. Whether you have an idea for a workshop, mentoring program, heritage project, social activity, or something entirely unique, we'd love to hear from you.
Have an idea you'd like to see brought to life? Submit your proposal for consideration by July 1, 2026.
Let's work together to create new opportunities for seniors to connect, learn, contribute, and make a lasting impact in our community.
Have an Idea That Could Make a Difference for Seniors in Our Community?
The New Horizons for Seniors Program (NHSP) is a federal funding program that supports projects designed by seniors, for seniors. Community-based projects can receive up to $50,000 in funding for one year to bring meaningful ideas to life.
We're exploring opportunities to develop new programs and improvements at the Avon River Heritage & Culture Centre and Avon Spirit Shipyard, and we'd love to hear from local seniors who are interested in getting involved.
Funding may support projects that:
✅ Share knowledge, skills, and life experiences between seniors
✅ Create opportunities for social connection and community participation
✅ Develop resources, tools, and learning opportunities that benefit other seniors
✅ Promote awareness of issues affecting older adults, including elder abuse and financial literacy
✅ Support mentorship programs in areas such as arts, crafts, woodworking, gardening, and traditional skills
✅ Purchase equipment needed for senior-focused programming
✅ Improve community spaces where seniors gather for activities, games, workshops, coffee socials, and conversation
✅ Help seniors access programming through transportation support when needed
Whether you have a fully developed project in mind or just the beginning of an idea, we'd love to start the conversation.
The 2027–2028 NHSP application deadline is July 14, 2026.
To discuss your idea, visit the Centre on weekends between 10:00 AM and 5:00 PM, or send a brief project pitch to:
[email protected]
Together, we can create programs that celebrate the knowledge, experience, and contributions of seniors while strengthening our community for everyone.
We're exploring opportunities to develop new programs and improvements at the Avon River Heritage & Culture Centre and Avon Spirit Shipyard, and we'd love to hear from local seniors who are interested in getting involved.
Funding may support projects that:
✅ Share knowledge, skills, and life experiences between seniors
✅ Create opportunities for social connection and community participation
✅ Develop resources, tools, and learning opportunities that benefit other seniors
✅ Promote awareness of issues affecting older adults, including elder abuse and financial literacy
✅ Support mentorship programs in areas such as arts, crafts, woodworking, gardening, and traditional skills
✅ Purchase equipment needed for senior-focused programming
✅ Improve community spaces where seniors gather for activities, games, workshops, coffee socials, and conversation
✅ Help seniors access programming through transportation support when needed
Whether you have a fully developed project in mind or just the beginning of an idea, we'd love to start the conversation.
The 2027–2028 NHSP application deadline is July 14, 2026.
To discuss your idea, visit the Centre on weekends between 10:00 AM and 5:00 PM, or send a brief project pitch to:
[email protected]
Together, we can create programs that celebrate the knowledge, experience, and contributions of seniors while strengthening our community for everyone.
The Vera Mae & the LaHave Islands Marine Museum
A visit to the LaHave Islands Marine Museum led to the discovery of an Avondale connection and inspired us to engage our community to start dreaming up their own ideas for a project that compliments our facility and the work we do here.
Here is a recap of this visit on July 17th of 2023, submitted by our Facility Manager and Artist in Residence, Tacha Reed.
Here is a recap of this visit on July 17th of 2023, submitted by our Facility Manager and Artist in Residence, Tacha Reed.
So what does a museum manager do on their day off? They visit a museum of course!
Actually we were headed to the south shore to put our toes in the ocean and get some relief from the ongoing heatwave and "relentless" (to quote the weather report) humidity. Unfortunately the moment we put our feet down on the sand at Crescent Beach the skies opened up and forced us back into our car.
I'm embarrassed to say, but for the first time ever when approaching the LaHave Islands Marine Museum (after doing this drive at least a few dozen times over the last decade, always one of us asking "should we stop?") we finally made the turn into the parking lot and started to explore a small boatshed while the rain passed.
I was immediately drawn to a barrel of cork, recognizing the material as the same used in the Rotundus life jacket that we have among our collection of local mementoes dedicated to the Avon River.
Reading through the interpretive material I was surprised to see that the restored Vera Mae boat beside me had made its way back to LaHave Islands courtesy of an "Avondale Historical" group (even more evidence that we should just call ourselves the Avondale Museum). Within a few moments I recognized the Avon Spirit Shipyard and the old barn that used to sit across the street from our museum. Right on cue, as if delivered by fate, a volunteer named Doug arrived to tell me all about the wonderful project taken on by local seniors back in 2006 thanks to funding from New Horizons for Seniors. Doug then encouraged us to further explore the museum, which has been located within the former Methodist church since 1978.
Now this is my kind of museum! Mementos of memories left behind by members of the community fill the space from floor to ceiling (over 4000 to be exact), with wonderful stories and artwork speckled throughout.
We could have spent hours there, but the museum actually became quite busy with visitors while we were there, so I was only able to capture a wee sampling of some of the items that caught my eye in this eclectic museum, nestled in a perfectly picturesque cove just past Crescent Beach in Lunenburg County, Nova Scotia.
Actually we were headed to the south shore to put our toes in the ocean and get some relief from the ongoing heatwave and "relentless" (to quote the weather report) humidity. Unfortunately the moment we put our feet down on the sand at Crescent Beach the skies opened up and forced us back into our car.
I'm embarrassed to say, but for the first time ever when approaching the LaHave Islands Marine Museum (after doing this drive at least a few dozen times over the last decade, always one of us asking "should we stop?") we finally made the turn into the parking lot and started to explore a small boatshed while the rain passed.
I was immediately drawn to a barrel of cork, recognizing the material as the same used in the Rotundus life jacket that we have among our collection of local mementoes dedicated to the Avon River.
Reading through the interpretive material I was surprised to see that the restored Vera Mae boat beside me had made its way back to LaHave Islands courtesy of an "Avondale Historical" group (even more evidence that we should just call ourselves the Avondale Museum). Within a few moments I recognized the Avon Spirit Shipyard and the old barn that used to sit across the street from our museum. Right on cue, as if delivered by fate, a volunteer named Doug arrived to tell me all about the wonderful project taken on by local seniors back in 2006 thanks to funding from New Horizons for Seniors. Doug then encouraged us to further explore the museum, which has been located within the former Methodist church since 1978.
Now this is my kind of museum! Mementos of memories left behind by members of the community fill the space from floor to ceiling (over 4000 to be exact), with wonderful stories and artwork speckled throughout.
We could have spent hours there, but the museum actually became quite busy with visitors while we were there, so I was only able to capture a wee sampling of some of the items that caught my eye in this eclectic museum, nestled in a perfectly picturesque cove just past Crescent Beach in Lunenburg County, Nova Scotia.
