Volunteer Profile
A Dedicated Volunteer Ensures RDC is Here for Future Generations
“Education builds strong citizens, a strong economy and a strong community, and I want to play a role to help RDC continue its legacy of building central Alberta.”
A desire to help is what first attracted volunteer Darcy Mykytyshyn to get involved in Red Deer College fundraising. Mykytyshyn is Chair of the Fund Development Advisory Group and has accepted the challenge of helping RDC leadership guide long-term fundraising and sustainability goals for the College.
His involvement at RDC has been part of his path for several years. That path began in 2002 during the Annual RDC Golf Classic: “My story is one of progression,” says Mykytyshyn. “Fundraising for RDC also intrigued me because my wife, Loretta, is a new Alum of RDC. She went back to school from 2005 to 2009 to complete her Bachelor of Education (Middle Years), and RDC proved that you don’t have to leave central Alberta to enhance your education.”
Mykytyshyn has devoted a great deal of time to volunteering - bringing passion and wit to the volunteer table as well as challenging our development strategy so that it sustains RDC into the future.
He’s also had great success in his professional career. With a plethora of experience in the financial services industry, this business person began as board director for a Saskatchewan credit union in the mid-1990s. He then moved into management and consulting for the credit union sector. For his experience and proven commitment to the industry, he was named a “Future Leader” by Credit Union Central of Canada in 2005 and then by the World Union in 2006 – one of only five people awarded!
Today he is President of Strategy in Action Inc., a consulting firm he began, “focusing on best practices in governance as well as assisting organizations with their strategic development and the execution of the strategies that evolve.”
His actions and work reflect his belief in the importance of community involvement, and his record of helping is lengthy: he chaired the United Way Campaign for central Alberta, co-chaired RDC’s International Wine Auction, volunteered for Red Deer’s Festival of Trees, and is Past-President of the Red Deer Kinsmen Club, also chairing several annual Kinsmen Dream Home projects. He has helped raise nearly $9 million for the region.
Mykytyshyn is committed to ensuring “that central Albertans have an educational institution that is accessible, flexible and comprehensive in what it offers.”
His son, Sam, was born in 2010 and Mykytyshyn wants to make sure RDC, at the heart of central Alberta, is here to provide the education Sam wants when he grows up.
“When I went to college, the choice was ‘head to the big city’. That doesn’t need to happen here in Red Deer. We need to look at RDC from two perspectives – the students who attend and the community that needs them [the students].”
Mykytyshyn’s humble and eager nature stands out, and his passion for RDC and what the College means to the region is deep. We’re fortunate to have his help in planning for RDC’s sustainable future.
“The more our local students attend RDC and stay in central Alberta, the faster central Alberta will grow into the economic powerhouse that we are geographically positioned to be. The next 20 years are going to be exciting for the region – RDC is crucial to making the dream a reality.”