Squamish Community Foundation (SCF) officials last week handed out $10,000 to five groups that provide service to needy local residents.
The 10-year-old foundation, whose mission is to bolster the community through innovative leadership, creative philanthropy and effective charitable endowments, according to its mission statement, handed out cash to Big Brothers Big Sisters Sea to Sky, the Canadian National Institute for the Blind (CNIB), the Easter Seal House Society, the Squamish Food Bank and Squamish Helping Hands.
During the group's annual grant announcement event last Thursday (Oct. 10) at the Squamish Adventure Centre, foundation president Kevin Haberl said the SCF has seen steady growth over the past few years both in terms of profile and the size and number of donations from businesses and individuals.
What hooked me in on serving on the board five years ago was the vision that someday, the foundation would be able to fund local non-profit groups so that they don't have to spend half their time fundraising, Haberl said.
While he admitted it hasn't yet reached that point, one of the SCF's most dedicated donors Murray Sovereign, owner/operator of the Squamish Valhalla Pure outdoor equipment store was honoured at Thursday's event. Over the past few years, Sovereign has donated more than $40,000 to the foundation.
There's a fraction of a percentage of the profits from the store that we set aside every month and twice a year, we just write a cheque, Sovereign said. It's not a huge amount, but over time it can really pile up, and I'm hoping it can be used as an example for other businesses to follow.
Donations to SCF may be earmarked for specific areas such as health care or the environment or to the SCF general fund, Haberl said. Each year, the SCF invites applications from non-profit groups, and the grants committee then vets them and decides which ones to support.
It's hard, because there are lots of organizations and projects in town that are worthy and we can't support them all, or in some cases, to the degree that we would like, Haberl said.
Last week, Big Brothers Big Sisters received $500 to support its youth peer mentoring program; CNIB received $1,200 to pay for devices to be placed in local libraries to allow the blind to read printed books; the Easter Seal House Society received $2,500 to provide an affordable place near B.C. Children's Hospital in Vancouver for families from Squamish and elsewhere to stay while their children are undergoing treatment; the Squamish Food Bank received $3,000 to provide items such as milk, eggs, fruits and vegetables to those in need; and Squamish Helping Hands received $2,800 to help buy furniture for its new homeless shelter.
Haberl said work is already underway on SCF's Vital Signs report, a periodic statistical snapshot on the social, environmental and educational health of the community. In accordance with the policies of the Community Foundations of Canada, of which SCF is a member, the report is to be released in October 2014, in time for the next municipal election.
For more information on SCF, visit www.squamishfoundation.com
