Volunteers

Carrying on a legacy of giving back to the community and supporting conservation

Nicole DePauw named Ducks Unlimited Canada’s Manitoba Volunteer of the Year

By Keagan Perlette April 20, 2026

Nicole DePauw has been volunteering with Ducks Unlimited Canada (DUC) for over 25 years. She inherited her generous spirit from her father, a longtime DUC volunteer himself.

“My dad was involved with Ducks Unlimited, he did blood drives, he was part of the Lions Club and the curling club and he drove a school bus — all while working,” she says. “He instilled in us that you have to give back to your community. It’s important for all of us to get involved because if you don’t do it, who will? I believe you have to do your best to leave the world better than you found it.”

A legacy of giving back

DePauw currently serves as treasurer for the Tourond Creek committee just outside Winnipeg, Man. and as treasurer for DUC’s Manitoba Provincial Council. She started volunteering when her dad asked her for some help with his committee. “He said they needed someone young to do their paperwork and computer work and wanted me to lend a hand. That’s when it all started,” she recalls.

As a volunteer, DePauw helps organize the annual Tourond Creek fundraising banquet as well as volunteer appreciation events around the province. She also gives workshops for new treasurers to bring them up to speed on managing finances for their DUC committees.

In 2017, DePauw took it upon herself to train Manitoba volunteers on DUC’s DucNet software for managing fundraising events. The self-directed initiative earned her the Volunteer of the Year award back in 2018.

Going the extra mile

Each year, DePauw also helps mail out Manitoba Conservation Calendars purchased online. These calendars are hot ticket items for DUC supporters. Each calendar enters buyers into a raffle for firearms or cash prizes and draws happen every week throughout the year.

In 2026, DePauw personally addressed over 1,000 calendar packages — but her work didn’t stop there. Since the calendars were due to go out during the Canada Post strike in the fall, DePauw and her husband spent their own time hand-delivering packages across Winnipeg. “The strike threw us for a loop,” she says. “But we got those calendars into people’s mailboxes.”

DePauw is deeply committed to the DUC community and it’s the people that keep her coming back year after year to support the organization.

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Making new friends is what I value most about being involved with Ducks Unlimited. We get together and we have a lot of laughs, it’s always a fun group.

Nicole DePauw

“My husband and I really enjoy spending time with the friends we’ve made through Ducks, even outside of DUC events.”

Keeping the community connected

Making sure DUC volunteers stay connected has always been a top priority for DePauw. She’s particularly proud of a virtual wine and cheese night she and her committee hosted during the COVID-19 lockdown in collaboration with Calabria Market & Fine Wines in Winnipeg and the West Winnipeg DUC chapter. “It was a really great event. People could pick up their packages at Calabria and join in from home. We had a sommelier from Calabria talk us through the wines and food pairings.”

DePauw is also driven by a passion for conservation. “We often take the fact that we have clean running water coming out of our taps for granted,” she says.

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Wetlands are so important because they filter out contaminants and carbon. Without conservation, we wouldn’t have access to drinking water. We need to conserve water, keep it clean and make sure future generations can benefit from it.

Nicole DePauw

Seeing the difference DUC initiatives have made in her community has been one of the most rewarding aspects of being involved with the organization. “Ducks Unlimited was a part of the sewage lagoon regeneration in Niverville, which saved the taxpayers millions of dollars because they didn’t have to truck out the waste,” she says.

Growing the flock

DePauw hopes to see the DUC community in Manitoba continue to grow and she’s always excited when new people join committees or attend dinners and events.

“We want to keep things fresh and fun,” she says. “What I always say is that you don’t have to come in and give three days a week. There’s a week each year where we need more hands. You’ll meet great people, you have tons of laughs and it all goes to a really good cause.”

There are approximately 462 Ducks Unlimited Canada volunteers in Manitoba and 2,810 across Canada. Ducks Unlimited Canada is proud to recognize each of them — including outstanding leaders like Nicole DePauw — as volunteer champions and conservationists who help ignite volunteerism and serve with generosity, passion and dedication.