Grunthal woman is all about building community, relationships

As it is National Women’s History Month in Canada, The Carillon spoke with four extraordinary women in the Southeast who are making a difference in their communities and have done or are doing extraordinary things. One woman will be profiled every week in October.

Candice Bakx-Friesen is all about building community and relationships. She lives by the motto: life is short, be intentional, and create impact daily.

“I think that it’s easy to have those one-off moments where we, you know, have an opportunity to inspire somebody. Or we look for an opportunity to volunteer somewhere. But it really has to be something that we do every day,” she said. “There’s opportunities to make an impact every day in somebody’s life. It could be holding the door open for somebody. It could be just connecting and smiling.”

This sense of community was instilled in Bakx-Friesen as a child by her parents.

“There’s not an option for me in my life to just be complacent. I was raised to look at opportunities to do better. And so, because that’s how I was raised, that’s the only way I look at community. So, if I’m going to live in a community, I’m going to make it better. If I’m going to work in a community, I’m going to do what I can to make it better. That’s the only option.”

She said it is important to give back and that is something she is passing on to her children.

Bakx-Friesen works as a realtor, but she is also a money coach. While she teaches adults about how to manage their money she also decided to teach teenagers how to handle their finances. This morphed into creating a kids market this spring where Grunthal youth created small businesses and tried to sell their wares.

“We had 30 kids with different businesses come to the market and sell their products. Which is really cool…I think being an entrepreneur myself and having that background growing up as a kid, I would have loved something like that.”

Bakx-Friesen used to sit on the Grunthal recreation board where she helped put the focus on recreation rather than on facilities.

“So, I think recreation is one of those ways that people can get to know other people. And it’s really important for healthy communities that we have that interaction. Society really emphasizes that we should do it on our own and get through life alone.”

When it comes to volunteering, Bakx-Friesen rolls up her sleeves and jumps right in. She currently works as one of 20 volunteers for Grunthal’s COPP program, which patrols the streets at night to notify the police of suspicious activity.

When someone suggested a soup kitchen in Grunthal, Bakx-Friesen was right there ready to get it going. The soup kitchen now serves low-income residents or homeless people food once a month.

Other places she has volunteered include the Grunthal Chamber of Commerce, volunteering at her children’s schools, Grunthal New Horizons Seniors’ Center, the Hanover Ag Fair, and being an assistant coach on her daughter’s volleyball team.

“Community is just supporting people around you. I think that if we all take the opportunity every day to look at who around me can I make their life better and how can I do that. Where are some opportunities?”

She mentioned she saw a post on Facebook about adopting a senior over the Christmas holidays. She thinks that is a great idea and is currently looking into it.

“There’s always something that will pop up or that comes to mind. And I think it’s for a reason. So, looking at that and figuring out what can I actually do to make my community better.”

One initiative that Bakx-Friesen is proud of is the women’s group she created called Connect and Inspire, which has been meeting for more than 10 years.

“It really encourages women to share and to speak and to be leaders. As well as women who come, again, it builds that community so you can meet new people.”

“I think there’s these different opportunities that present themselves where women are looking to connect with women,” she said later, adding, “I think friendships have formed. So, it’s really neat to see women who have come for the whole 10 years. And every month that we host it, there’s new women who come as well. So, just seeing women have those opportunities to, again, it’s called Connect and Inspire for that reason. That women can connect and be inspired by the stories of other women.”

Last June, Bakx-Friesen and her husband created two scholarships worth $500 each for two graduates at Green Valley School. She said rural students sometimes don’t have the financial opportunities that students in bigger urban centres would have, so they decided to create the scholarships which are awarded based on community work.

“So, it’s not necessarily the highest grade that gets it, but how have these kids in high school already been contributing to their community?,” she said.

Bakx-Friesen said people have reached out to her for advice on starting their own altruistic initiatives in the community.

“Just to encourage people, no matter where they’re at, to take that step forward, to be brave, to be a leader, and give back. And it’s so rewarding and fulfilling. And I think that’s what’s really also important. Giving back. It helps you, but it also helps others.”