Thank You, Bill

Through Union Gospel Mission’s 81-year history, we have been faithfully blessed with strong, stable, and vision-laden leadership — and William B. Mollard has been no exception.

As UGM’s 4th President, Bill felt called to establish a compassionate, faith-based continuum of care for all people, including families, across Metro Vancouver.

Remarkable progress has been made toward accomplishing that dream, with UGM’s 601 East Hastings Building completed in 2011, and our Women & Families Centre now opening this spring. “These accomplishments have always been, and will always be, a team effort at Union Gospel Mission,” Bill says, as he looks back over the many changes that have positively changed countless lives these last 14 years.

Looking toward the future, he recently shared with staff, “I am ready to retire because I feel that everything God has sent me here to be a part of, has been done.”

Throughout countless meals and community celebrations, Bill has shown up with a smile on his face, running shoes on, and the desire to humbly serve community members. His booming laugh has filled the lunch room as he listened to, and learned from, men participating in UGM’s Alcohol & Drug Recovery Program, and his ability to provide wisdom and discernment to staff at every level of the organization hasn’t gone unnoticed.

As we celebrate Bill’s upcoming retirement in Summer 2022, we thank him for embodying UGM’s values, building upon our faith, and strengthening our organizational culture. In working with UGM’s Board of Directors and guiding our Senior Leadership Team, Bill always demonstrated immense wisdom, care, and strategic vision — laying out a path for UGM’s way forward.

Thanks to Bill’s heart, the tenacity of our team, and faithful donors, individuals across Metro Vancouver now have access to UGM’s life-giving continuum of care.

However, our vision doesn’t end there. After journeying alongside countless people toward restoration, we are more determined than ever to make our transformative continuum of care accessible to people in every community we serve — across Metro Vancouver, and into the Fraser Valley.

In looking ahead to the future, we rest assured that the key anchors that have grounded us for over 81 years — our Vision, Mission and Core Values — will not change. With the search for UGM’s 5th President underway, we have partnered with WATSON Advisors to ensure that our ongoing commitment to anti-racism, equity and reconciliation is reflected in our search process. It is a priority that the future President will lead the UGM team as we live those ongoing commitments in all that we do.

While the future looks very bright indeed, we know that Bill will be very missed.

If you have questions about what this means for UGM, please contact communications@ugm.ca.

If you have a media inquiry, please contact Nicole Mucci: nmucci@ugm.ca or 604.996.1417.