Carman Family Resource Centre officially closed the books on 2016 at its annual general meeting this week.

Executive Director Michelle Bergsma says they continue to offer solid programs for young families in the area, which is generating strong attendance and great support from the community.

"Overall, we run a fairly straight routine. We have a good board of directors, we're going strong, and our programs are getting great attendance," said Bergsma.

Family resource centres in many communities are gaining in popularity among young families, according to Bergsma, because they offer a place for parents to meet and for children to make new friends.

2016 marked the non-profit organization's 20th anniversary which was celebrated through a variety of events and activities.

"This is our 20th anniversary AGM which kind of winds up our anniversary celebration. I think the volunteers who started the centre probably didn't expect that it would be here 20 years later. You just never know how things will turn out when you start something new."

Meanwhile, the organization continues to make progress in creating greater awareness about its services through its website and on Facebook..

"I think we are building more of a community presence and we have really good promotions by public health and we do attend different meetings. We have a place at the table with Healthy Communities so we can promote our programs."

Moving forward, the ongoing challenge for Carman Family Resource Centre will be finding volunteers to serve on the board of directors which must have a minimum of six people.

"Our last number of years we've had just the six members, but it's tough because there are so many boards in town and so many opportunities for people and there's only so many people who are willing to volunteer, so that is one of our biggest challenges."