An essential component of a healthy society, volunteerism is not only good for the soul and often crucial, it can also lead to the spotlight, as Margaret ‘‘Muggs’’ Tibbo has learned.
Last month, this longtime friend of L’Arche Avalon and outstanding citizen of St. John’s was invested into the Order of Newfoundland and Labrador along with seven other remarkable Newfoundlanders and Labradorians.
Honoured in the Sports/Recreation/Fitness category of the Order, Muggs was recognized for her decades-long contributions to advancing inclusion in sport for persons with disabilities. She began her volunteer work in the fitness and recreation field in the late 1970s and quickly became a dedicated advocate of adaptive sport.
Supporter and instructor of both alpine and cross-country para skiing, cofounder of the therapeutic riding program Rainbow Riders, Muggs has championed accessibility and inclusion across many other disciplines, including para hockey, sailing, athletics, swimming, rowing and wheelchair basketball!
While her appointment to the Order of Newfoundland and Labrador isn’t her first major distinction—Muggs was inducted into the Newfoundland and Labrador Volunteer Hall of Fame in 2018 for her years of volunteer work, primarily supporting people with disabilities—the “butterflies in the stomach” feeling was just as strong when she learned of this latest honour. “I find it exciting, yes, but a bit overwhelming as well,” she admits.
Her passion for helping people with disabilities reach their full potential seems to have grown naturally. “In high school, there was a classmate who needed help getting from one place to another, so everyone pitched in. We didn’t think twice about it.”
A few years later, while working in a day camp as an arts and crafts coordinator in Nova Scotia, she took a young camper’s request to heart. He had asked her why his brother Patrick couldn’t come to camp with him—Patrick had cerebral palsy and used a wheelchair. Muggs thought, “Why not?” She convinced whoever needed convincing and got Patrick into the camp. One day, a group activity involved going into the woods and climbing trees, but Patrick was not going to be left behind. Muggs and a colleague got him out of the chair and up in a tree with ropes and knots. When it was time to head back, he did not want to come down. “He was grinning like the Cheshire cat,” said Muggs. And that was the day she knew: “If something as simple as tying knots can make someone so happy, I guess that’s what I’ll do with my life.”
Besides all her volunteer work, Muggs had a “day job” as a recreation specialist at the Children’s Rehabilitation Centre, serving kids from across the province of Newfoundland and Labrador. In 2017, after 37 years of what she fondly calls “getting paid to play with kids,” she retired. But some passions never retire—volunteering is one of them. For the past nine years, Muggs has been a familiar and welcoming presence at L’Arche Avalon, contributing to the annual auction, helping out with the yard sale, and bringing joy to the community through music. As a member of the LA Band, she fills gatherings with rhythm and warmth, singing and playing both the guitar and the bodhrán, the traditional Irish drum. The world needs more Muggs.
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