Victoria’s Vital Charities
The best place to discover local organizations that matter most to you.
Vital Charities allows you to search hundreds of local organizations that have received a grant from the Victoria Foundation or that hold an endowment fund with us. Explore your community and connect with programs and projects like never before. Discover the innovative and effective solutions that local organizations are undertaking to address issues raised in the Victoria’s Vital Signs report. Hundreds of charities are profiled.
How to Use This Tool
- Search multiple criteria by entering keywords separated by spaces in the search bar below.
- For example, you could enter “pets”, or “Saanich” or “music”… whatever your interest may be.
- Also, you can use the toggle arrows at the top of each column to sort by that field.
| Organization Name | Program Name | Funding Year | Grantee And/Or Hosted Organization | Vital Signs Issue | Population Type | Description |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cowichan Musical Society | 2024 | Hosted Organization | Arts & Culture | General Population | ||
| St. Margaret’s School | 2024 | Hosted Organization | Learning | Children, Youth | ||
| The Discovery School Society | 2024 | Hosted Organization | Learning | Children, Youth | ||
| Cowichan Musical Society | 1000X5 Children’s Book Recycling Project Society | 2023 | Grantee | Getting Started in our Community | Children | 1000X5 Children’s Book Recycling Project Society supports young children and learning by providing books for babies and preschoolers in this crucial early brain development and literacy stage. Every child gains a home library and has those books read to them 1000 times by age five, building lifelong language, literacy and social-emotional skills . Many families, due to poverty or unfamiliarity with early reading do not own many or any books. 1000X5 changes this reality. |
| A C P D -ACTION COMMITTEE OF PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES SOCIETY | Core Funding for Continuing Operations and Critical Services | 2023 | Grantee | Standard of Living | Persons with Disabilities | The ACPD provides essential services to people with disabilities in Greater Victoria, including support for applications for disability assistance, CPP-D, and other income programs; personalized advocacy for tenancy issues; and information and referral to other services. This grant will allow us to continue operations by providing funding for non-funded administrative personnel, and other core costs that are only partially funded by other grants. |
| ABBEYFIELD HOUSE ST PETER’S SOCIETY | Lifelong well being | 2023 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Seniors | This grant will support our organization’s ability to provide our community of older adults with programs that nourish physical and mental wellbeing and assist them to embrace their part in staying active and engaged and remaining independent all of their life or for as long as they possibly can. |
| ALZHEIMER SOCIETY OF B.C. | Support, Information and Education Programs for People Affected by Dementia | 2023 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Health & Wellness | Seniors | A Vital Grant will allow the Alzheimer Society of B.C. to provide trusted information and much-needed support to help people with dementia and their caregivers live their best lives possible at every stage of the dementia journey. Our essential support, information and education programs connect Capital Region participants to a local community of care and foster confidence, security and belonging. |
| Artemis Place Society | Sustainable and Inclusive Therapeutic Garden | 2023 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Youth | Artemis Place Society, a school and Young Parent Program supports youth from the Capital Region facing diverse and complex challenges including mental health, food security, housing and health. This project is fourfold: it continues to intentionally build students’ resilience through therapeutic programs. It offers a variety of garden experiences (Indigenous, healing, food growing, job training). It links with community partners and expand to a children’s garden with intentional investigative play and family food production. |
| Artsea Community Arts Council Society | Strengthening Organizational Resilience for ArtSea Community Arts Council | 2023 | Grantee | Arts & Culture | General Population | This grant will help to support administrative capacity for ArtSea, to ensure ongoing business continuity, and to support operations and arts and culture programs that enrich the quality of life, health and well-being of our communities. |
| ATHLETICS FOR KIDS FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE (B.C.) SOCIETY | Capital Region Community Development Grant | 2023 | Grantee | Sports & Recreation | Children | Athletics4Kids is seeking a community development grant for the Capital Region to cover operating, staffing and digital transformation costs associated with running our Sport4Life Capital Region Project. Our project aims to provide needy kids in the Capital with the opportunity to access organized sports. We work diligently and persistently with sports organizations to ensure that school-aged children from low-income backgrounds are supported in a specific sporting program year-round and year after year. |
| B.C. MUSLIM ASSOCIATION | Victoria Muslim Women empowerment via Sport | 2023 | Grantee | Sports & Recreation | Women | This grant will support the Victoria Women Sports arm of BCMA to provide culturally appropriate sport and physical activity programs through systems navigation, building of capacity and quality programs designed for the members by the members. |
| BALLET VICTORIA SOCIETY | Operating Support for Ballet Victoria’s Capital Region Community Programs | 2023 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Arts & Culture | Seniors | Ballet Victoria is seeking operating funding to maintain the post-pandemic growth of its three main community engagement programs that directly benefit the Capital Region residents (accessibility/inclusivity). |
| BAYANIHAN CULTURAL AND HOUSING SOCIETY | Staff and equipment needs for Bayanihan Community Centre’s operations | 2023 | Grantee | Arts & Culture | Newcomers, Immigrants and Refugees | Funding will be used to pay part time staff and upgrade equipment for meetings, workshops and livestreaming |
| Beaver Point Community Hall Association | Bring Beaver Point Hall Kitchen up to Health Authority Standards | 2023 | Grantee | Arts & Culture | Children | The Island Health Authority has mandated that Beaver Point Hall upgrade its aging kitchen with new appliances which meet current health standards. |
| BEST BUDDIES OF CANADA | Friendship Program | 2023 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | Children | Best Buddies Canada is a national registered charity that promotes inclusion by creating lasting one-to-one friendships between individuals living with and without intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD and Autism Spectrum Disorder). This grant request is to support expansion in Victoria, by re-starting chapters that have been on hiatus during the pandemic, and starting new chapters in interested schools. |
| BIG BROTHERS AND BIG SISTERS OF VICTORIA CAPITAL REGION | Expanding B You Healthy Bodies Healthy Minds Program | 2023 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Youth | B You Healthy Bodies Healthy Minds was established in 2010 & through program evaluation and stakeholder feedback we have determined that the program is an asset. Traditionally the program has severed female identifying, this new expansion of the program will sever female identifying in a sperate group, who are struggling socially and emotionally. In partnership with area middle schools, youth aged 13-15 who face adversities are matched in a group with three trained mentors. |
| Bike Victoria Society | Helping Hands: Health and Sustainability Initiative | 2023 | Grantee | Transportation | General Population | We run a broad range of community programs which help reduce barriers for people who want to ride bikes to improve their quality of life, health outcomes, and reduce environmental impact. Funds will be used to stabilize our organization, which has seen rapid growth, by providing staff training and supports, program materials, and equipment needed to be more efficient, effective, and responsive. |
| BIRTHING FAMILIES FOUNDATION | Community Doula Support: A Wrap-around referral based program | 2023 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Women | A grant for the Birthing Families Foundation will strengthen and sustain our organization’s ability to continue to do the important work of disrupting the inequities of maternal healthcare in the community by providing funding to maintain and grow our core team and support staff. |
| BOYS AND GIRLS CLUB SERVICES OF GREATER VICTORIA | The Village Initiative – Building a Collaborative Regional Response. | 2023 | Grantee | Getting Started in our Community | General Population | The Village Initiative is a regional collaborative of over 40 organizations that came together to improve the system of support for all families. Our aim is to ensure that the exponential growth in Sooke and West Shore is met with a proactive response that prioritizes accessibility through coordinated planning and service delivery. We are working together to successfully meet the needs of all families in the region with a proactive model for service delivery. |
| BRIDGES FOR WOMEN SOCIETY | Community Grants Program | 2023 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Belonging & Engagement | Women | Advocacy & Client Support |
| British Columbia Black History Awareness Society | Black History Organization Renewal Project | 2023 | Grantee | Arts & Culture | Black and People of Colour | This grant will support our organization to incorporate new generations of leadership to provide education and activities on the important role that Black people have played in the social, economic, government, professional and other activities in BC. Through presentations, exhibits, digital resources, printed material, conferences, heritage preservation and cultural events, the organization reaches all residents to combat erasure of Black people from history and combats racism and discrimination. |
| BRITISH COLUMBIA SOCIETY FOR THE PREVENTION OF CRUELTY TO ANIMALS | Victoria Centre Upgrades – Cat Condos | 2023 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | General Population | The BC SPCA Victoria Community Animal Centre needs help funding new cat kennel banks that adhere to industry standards. These enclosures offer cats more space, choices, and enrichment opportunities, promoting their overall health and happiness. They also provide a safe environment. Whether cats are in foster care, lost and waiting to be picked up, or awaiting adoption to their forever homes, we want to ensure they receive the comfiest care during their stay. |
| BURNSIDE GORGE COMMUNITY ASSOCIATION | Youth Self Sufficiency | 2023 | Grantee | Getting Started in our Community | Youth | Youth Self Sufficiency (YSS) supports youth who are in government care, on Youth Agreements, or without supports as they transition into adulthood. Working with youth aged 17-19, for up to three years, YSS takes an asset-based approach encompassing the following areas: housing, employment, education, relationship and trust building, life skills, identity and emotional healing. |
| C O C F COMMUNITY OPTIONS FOR CHILDREN AND FAMILIES SOCIETY | Family Support Services Program | 2023 | Grantee | Learning | General Population | Community Options for Children and Families’ (COCF) Family Support Program provides accessible and empowering services to parents, siblings and chosen family members of individuals with disabilities. Support groups, training events, and community gatherings are designed to strengthen resiliency and reduce isolation in families with multiple complex needs. |
| CAMOSUN COLLEGE FOUNDATION | Creating Equality through Access and Opportunity for South Island Youth | 2023 | Grantee | Learning | Youth | Our free dual credit program for grade 10-12 students on Southern Vancouver Island aims to increase post-secondary enrolment and success rates for students from all backgrounds. We provide equal opportunities for them to earn high school and post-secondary credits, regardless of their economic status. Our goal is to empower students with skills to achieve their career aspirations, breaking down socio-economic barriers and contributing to a stronger and more competitive local economy. |
| CANADIAN COUNCIL OF PROVINCIAL AND TERRITORIAL SPORT FEDERATIONS INC. | Sustaining a female hockey association: infrastructure development and volunteer resources | 2023 | Grantee | Sports & Recreation | Women | Capital Region Female Minor Hockey Association was formed in 2019 to address gender-based instability and inequity in the administration and delivery of female youth hockey programming in greater Victoria. After the first 3 seasons were either truncated or restricted due to the pandemic, we have only just completed our first complete season and have seen significant interest, participation and growth that outpaced our original predictions. Rapid expansion exposed limitations in our infrastructure and volunteer resources. |
| Canadian Organization Of The Blind And Deafblind / Organisation Canadienne Des Aveugles Et Sourd Aveugles | Pacific Training Centre For The Blind: Training, Education, and Outreach | 2023 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | Persons with Disabilities | The PTCB, a grassroots organization founded and run by blind people, will use this grant to help fund its positive and empowering Blind People In Charge Program. The program, which offers non-traditional and much-needed services, will consist of: in-person independence-skills training for blind participants, fun Braille workshops for the public, and outreach support groups for the blind community in the Victoria area. Blind people will run and facilitate all aspects of the program. |
| Cetus Research & Conservation Society | Protecting Endangered SRKW & Other Marine Mammals | 2023 | Grantee | Environmental Sustainability | Women | Cetus’s project will support the marine mammals of South-Coast BC, particularly the endangered Southern Resident Killer Whales. The presence, health and existence of these extraordinary animals benefits human communities in the area, from the pragmatic dependence on them of much of our tourism to our mental health and our connection to our physical environment. These realities make the work of Cetus vital to our region. |
| CHILD ABUSE PREVENTION AND COUNSELLING SOCIETY OF GREATER VICTORIA | Kid’s Hearts and Minds Matter | 2023 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Children | The Victoria Child Abuse Prevention and Counselling Centre (VCAPCC) is requesting funding to provide no cost long term counselling services to Children and Youth who have experienced emotional and/or physical abuse, neglect, maltreatment or who have witnessed domestic violence. |
| Citadel Therapy Canine Society | PTSD medical service dog support | 2023 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Persons with Disabilities | These funds will allow Citadel to certify one medical PTSD dog for a member of the BC Ambulance service. The remaining request will go towards starting training with a Canadian Forces Veteran and their service dog. |
| City of Langford | Change-Makers Gathering Festival 2023 | 2023 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | Indigenous People | The event was designed to honour and celebrate Indigenous people and culture and provides an opportunity for community members of all backgrounds to come together in a comfortable setting and honour the launch of June, Indigenous History Month. The festival is based on the Coast Salish Elders’ teaching “If you feel it in your heart, you should do it, and was structured to honour Indigenous knowledge in a fun, interactive and welcoming way for everyone.” |
| COLUMBIA INSTITUTE | Heat Emergency Resources for Precarious Workers | 2023 | Grantee | Safety | Newcomers, Immigrants and Refugees | Low-income workforces in Victoria are predominantly racialized, age-diverse, and experience poverty and discrimination at high rates; these sectors are disproportionately impacted by extreme weather events. This grant will support WSN to create and translate Heat Emergency Resources into ten key languages endemic to precarious work sectors in Victoria, while also distributing these resources through our wider network of service providers to ensure that everyone can access vital support in future climate crisis related heat emergencies. |
| Community First Foundation | Backpack Buddies Victoria | 2023 | Grantee | Standard of Living | Children | Backpack Buddies is dedicated to ensuring the most vulnerable children in Victoria have access to food. Many children rely on school meal programs but over the weekend may not eat at all. This is the weekend hunger gap. Backpack Buddies addresses this crisis by filling backpacks every Friday for students in need with enough meals and snacks to last the weekend. We are requesting this grant to provide Victoria children with food each weekend. |
| CONNECTIONS PLACE SOCIETY | Request for Vital Stream Funding | 2023 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Health & Wellness | Persons with Disabilities | Connections Place is a community-based program that provides psycho-social rehabilitation, support and resources to adults living with mental illness in Greater Victoria. With the ongoing mental health crisis and the increased need for mental health services, our Clubhouse needs funding to continue providing essential support to our members, particularly in evenings, weekends and on holidays. |
| Construction Foundation Of BC (2012) Society | Rewired Recovery Foundation Grant | 2023 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Persons with Disabilities | ReWired Recovery Foundation meets individuals living with addiction where they are at, but doesn’t leave them there. Working with committed organizations, families, and community helps us to provide recovery-based solutions for those in need. This grant will ensure our work continues to support Victorians on the path to recovery. Our goal is to empower people with skills, safety, confidence, and opportunity to build lives they are proud of and communities that keep them well. |
| COOK STREET VILLAGE ACTIVITY CENTRE SOCIETY (NEW HORIZONS) | Food Security Program Dishwasher | 2023 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Persons with Disabilities | This grant will be used to purchase a commercial dishwasher for our food security program. This program gives food to the community twice a week as well as prepares low cost, health, and delicious meals as part of our Grab and Go program. The healthy living kitchen provides many educational opportunities for people to learn to cook on a budget as well as connect with their community as kitchen assistants. |
| CORNERSTONE YOUTH SOCIETY | Organizational Capacity | 2023 | Grantee | Standard of Living | Youth | This grant will help Sanctuary Youth Centre provide marginalized youth with pathways to health and resiliency. Funds will be directed to staffing our low barrier drop-in program and associated operating costs. With consistent funding, Sanctuary Youth will be able to continue opening our doors to at-risk and street engaged teenagers and young adults five days a week. |
| CRISIS INTERVENTION AND PUBLIC INFORMATION SOCIETY OF GREATER VICTORIA | In-School Suicide Prevention & Intervention Program | 2023 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Youth | This grant will support our organization to provide workshop-style suicide prevention education to youth in classrooms. Each workshop will be delivered and facilitated by highly trained and supported volunteer and staff presenters certified in Applied Suicide Intervention Skills Training (ASIST), a world-recognized suicide intervention training program. Suicide gains strength in silence making it imperative that presenters are skilled and comfortable with discussing the sensitive topic of suicide, and are able to focus on encouraging dialogue. |
| Cycling Without Age Society | Ongoing Operations Fund | 2023 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | Seniors | To serve our clients we need full coverage liability insurance. For safety purposes, we need to service and upgrade the trishaw lighting systems and ensure we have enough helmets on hand. We also need to replace a trishaw battery and have an extra battery on hand in case of equipment malfunction. General supplies such as a floor bicycle pump, extension cords and timers are ongoing necessities as well as a storage shed. |
| DANCE VICTORIA SOCIETY | Giving Space and Support to Racialized and Underrepresented Dance Artists | 2023 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Arts & Culture | LGBTQIA2S+ | Dance Victoria (DV) seeks funding to offer year-long residencies, including rehearsal space, technical support and mentorship, to underrepresented choreographers from local IBPoC, LGBTQ2S+ and disability communities. Resident artists will be hosted at DV’s Quadra Village studios during the 2023/24 season. |
| Downtown Blanshard Advisory Committee | Coordination for the Coalition of Neighbourhood Houses Capital Regional District | 2023 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | General Population | The Coalition of Neighbourhood Houses relies on the Coordinator role to function effectively. Securing additional funding for this position is integral. |
| Downtown Blanshard Advisory Committee | Quadra Village Community Centre Housing Outreach Program | 2023 | Grantee | Housing | Persons with Disabilities | We are requesting funds to support our Housing Outreach Program in continuing to help our community, and people in the Greater Victoria Area, in finding and keeping housing. |
| Eddie Reid Memorial Library Society | Enhancing Library Services for Rural and Remote Children and Youth | 2023 | Grantee | Learning | Children | Our Society wishes to improve and expand the children and youth services at Saturna Library, making the library a vibrant, interesting, and attractive place to attend, and thereby encouraging literacy, fostering a habit of reading, and supporting local school and pre-school programs. Since our community is rural and isolated, the library has a central role in providing access to all levels of reading and research materials for children and youth. |
| ESQUIMALT NEIGHBOURHOOD HOUSE SOCIETY | Community Based Mental Health Counselling for Adults | 2023 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Persons with Disabilities | Victoria Foundation funds will be used to support Esquimalt Neighbourhood House Society’s (“ENH”) mental health counselling service. For many years, ENH has offered barrier free (and free of charge), supported counselling for adults living in the CRD. This vital service is primarily offered by intensively trained volunteer counsellors. |
| Family Services Of Greater Victoria Society | Family Matters | 2023 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | General Population | Family Matters is a 4 part program that includes individual counselling and psycho-educational groups to provide timely and effective support and services to all family members as well as to access legal information, mediation and separation resource services. Specifically designed and inclusive, this program ensures that each family member receives the services they need in a safe and confidential setting. We will help family members learn how best to support themselves and each other. |
| Fateh Care Charity | Fateh Care Mobile Food Bank | 2023 | Grantee | Getting Started in our Community | Newcomers, Immigrants and Refugees | This grant will support Fateh Care to continue in its role as Greater Victoria’s mobile food bank program offering zero barriers to access for those in need. Our request for $30,000 will support the most basic needs of those unable to travel to food banks due to physical and/or financial conditions. |
| FIRST PEOPLES’ CULTURAL FOUNDATION | FirstVoices | 2023 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | Indigenous People | FirstVoices, a program of First Peoples’ Cultural Foundation, is a platform for Indigenous communities to share and promote language, oral culture and linguistic history. Language teams work with elders to curate and upload audio recordings, dictionaries, songs and stories. With support from the Victoria Foundation, FirstVoices will be able to engage in needed back-end technology updates, increased language learning features, and create a new and improved version for children and youth, |
| FRIENDS OF LIVING AND LEARNING THROUGH LOSS | Vital Streams Learning Through Loss Operational Funding | 2023 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Youth | Learning Through Loss provides counselling support for youths navigating the complex journey of grief, and delivers education for peers, parents and youth serving professionals, enabling circles of informed and empathetic support. Thanks to the support of funders, we deliver our services to youth without charge. We particularly appreciate Victoria Foundation’s recognition that serving our community’s most vulnerable relies on sound governance and professional operational leadership, and for supporting those needs through funding and education. |
| Friends Of The Dominion Astrophysical Observatory Society | Cosmic Classroom Connections | 2023 | Grantee | Learning | Children | Our mission is community outreach for Canadian astronomy, science programming, and education. Our focus is our popular and successful school and community programming at the Observatory and the Visitors’ Centre. This is offered at very low cost to schools. Funding of $30,000 is requested to keep these programs going and expand them. These funds will be used for staff salaries to continue and increase the available number of outreach opportunities for the public. |
| GALIANO CONSERVANCY ASSOCIATION | Support for Galiano Island Food Resiliency & Environmental Education 2024 | 2023 | Grantee | Learning | General Population | This request will: |
| GALIANO HEALTH CARE SOCIETY | Educate, Communicate, Appreciate: A Fundraising Plan for Galiano | 2023 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | General Population | There are significant barriers to fundraising needed to continue running Galiano Health Care Society. The majority of our residents are not provided with primary health care at the clinic given the long waitlist and thus often lack the understanding or incentives to assist funding the clinic. The GHCS has identified a number of strategies to address current challenges in providing health care to everyone on Galiano, including enhancing community engagement and strengthening fundraising activities. |
| GEORGIA STRAIT ALLIANCE | Mobilizing and supporting thriving, just communities balanced with the environment | 2023 | Grantee | Environmental Sustainability | General Population | This grant will support Georgia Strait Alliance’s work to deliver on our revitalized mission: Grounded in environmental justice, we mobilize and support collective action to protect the Salish Sea region. This requires a shift to a new approach to environmental conservation that builds and activates community power to foster systems transformation that is community-led and that leads to thriving and just communities living in balance with the environment in the CRD and beyond. |
| GLAD TIDINGS CHURCH (VICTORIA) | Food Insecurity and Free Food Mini Markets | 2023 | Grantee | Standard of Living | General Population | With food insecurity on the rise, and more families, seniors and individuals accessing our free food mini markets, there is a real need to supplement our markets beyond what the Capital Region Food Share Network can provide. |
| GORGE WATERWAY ACTION SOCIETY | GWAS: Strengthening our Human Resources | 2023 | Grantee | Learning | General Population | The grant would strengthen our employee management human resources. We have two permanent part time management employees who each work one day per week, leading a team of 15 staff summer students and 35 volunteers who run a Nature House environmental education and outreach program, a biology program, a restoration program, and an indigenous program. The grant funds would increase our management staff hours, increasing our ability to effectively deliver these programs. |
| GREATER VICTORIA CITIZENS COUNSELLING CENTRE | Adult counselling | 2023 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | General Population | The Victoria Foundation community grant supports us in financially sustaining the volunteer counselling program for diverse community members. Keeping our fees low means providing accessible counselling for people with low or no income that would otherwise not be able to access counselling. The need for mental health supports continues to increase in the community and we have over 100 volunteers that are deeply committed to providing services. |
| Greater Victoria Coalition To End Homelessness Society | Prevention through Systems Change: Creating Home | 2023 | Grantee | Housing | General Population | Ending homelessness requires increased focus on prevention. The Alliance to End Homelessness will collaborate with community partners and people with lived/living experience to develop a comprehensive understanding of where prevention is currently happening, what opportunities and gaps exist, and how this overarching strategy can inform the 2025-30 Community Plan to end homelessness. Project activities will include information gathering from key informants, mapping, a database of prevention activity, and a community strategy forum for knowledge sharing. |
| GREATER VICTORIA DOWN SYNDROME SOCIETY | Addressing Service Gaps for Individuals with Down Syndrome | 2023 | Grantee | Learning | Persons with Disabilities | This grant will enable our organization to assist individuals with Down syndrome and their families access the necessary services and supports to enable those individuals to gain independence, confidence, a sense of belonging and improved health and well being. |
| GREATER VICTORIA HOUSING SOCIETY | Organizational Capacity Building | 2023 | Grantee | Housing | Women | Our organization will undertake a multi vector approach to capacity building. This will include an Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion Audit from a professional organization (a full review of all policies and practices), multiple types of training for various staff, and full implementation of policies and practices to ensure equity for people of all races, ethnic groups, genders, sexualities, abilities, and other minority groups yet unforeseen. |
| GREATER VICTORIA VOLUNTEER SOCIETY | Youth 2020 | 2023 | Grantee | Getting Started in our Community | Youth | During the pandemic classes moved online, youth suffered Zoom fatigue, and teachers repeatedly shifted their plans to deliver online and cohort based learning programs. Traditional rights of passage were postponed or cancelled in order to keep youth and their families safe. Post pandemic many things have returned to normal – but not youth volunteering. Youth still contribute 25-30% fewer volunteering hours than before the pandemic and struggle to stay motivated and connect to community. |
| Green Teams Of Canada | Empowering the Next Generation of Environmental Community Leaders | 2023 | Grantee | Learning | Youth | Green Teams of Canada’s Leadership Program is starting its second year following the success of its 2022 pilot program. It is designed to train the next generation of leaders by providing experiential learning in community organizing. One youth will be hired, and the current leader who was part of the pilot program will be trained to mentor the new youth. They will co-run the Greater Victoria Green Team and engage the community in environmental activities. |
| Growing Young Farmers Society | Youth Outreach at The Sandown Centre for Regenerative Agriculture | 2023 | Grantee | Learning | Children | The Sandown Centre for Regenerative Agriculture will carry out the food literacy initiatives of The Growing Young Farmers Society. We will develop and implement hands-on educational opportunities for children to learn about ecosystem restoration, environmental stewardship and local, regenerative food production. |
| HABITAT ACQUISITION TRUST | Strengthening HAT: DEI Development and Staff Mental Health | 2023 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Environmental Sustainability | General Population | It is important that Indigenous communities who work with HAT do so in a way that feels safe and appropriate on their terms. Increasing staff and board understanding of Indigenous culture and Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) can make our work in these communities safer. Supporting staff well-being through accessible mental health and wellness supports is vital to HAT, and we see this grant as an opportunity to focus our energies in these inclusive ways. |
| Harmony Project Society Of British Columbia | Harmony Project Music Development for Sooke Youth | 2023 | Grantee | Getting Started in our Community | Youth | The request is to support music education and performance experiences for youth living in the greater Sooke community. It will be used to cover teacher remuneration, musical instruments for use by youth. And rehearsal space costs. |
| Harvest & Share Food Relief Society | 2023 Operation Grant | 2023 | Grantee | Standard of Living | General Population | Our aeroponic farming operation supplies fresh and nutritious vegetables to eight local food share organizations in Greater Victoria that redistribute them to those in need. In order to broaden our impact, we plan to double our outdoor farming footprint in spring 2023. Funds from the Victoria Foundation will be used to purchase supplies and materials, hire staff, and purchase management software. |
| HELP FILL A DREAM FOUNDATION OF CANADA | Family Assistance Program | 2023 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Standard of Living | Children | The Family Assistance Program is a life line for children and their families in the CRD. It provides support and funding to fill in the gaps in existing pediatric healthcare funding. It is bridge for parents to access medical treatment, equipment and other resources that they may not have been able to afford and provide for their child, which supports more equitable health outcomes for all. |
| HeroWork Program Society | HeroWork to create greater accessibility at essential Greater Victoria organizations | 2023 | Grantee | Economy | Persons with Disabilities | This grant will be used to support the delivery of HeroWork’s Radical Renovations at Power To Be in spring 2023, and St. Vincent de Paul in the fall of 2023. These two 2023 projects will provide increased programming and are directly focused on accessibility and inclusion with the intention of expanding and creating more efficiency for organizations working to remove barriers to equal access and opportunity due to a variety of societal disadvantages. |
| HOME IS WHERE WE LIVE-LIFE CYCLES PROJECT SOCIETY | LifeCycles 2023-2024 | 2023 | Grantee | Standard of Living | General Population | This grant will support LifeCycles in maintaining our core programs and supporting our staff capacity. With this grant, we will also work to enhance our services to become more accessible to equity-deserving groups. These funds will contribute to new partnerships and outreach with organizations supporting Indigenous Peoples, Racialized people, newcomers, and people with visible and invisible disabilities. |
| Human-Nature Counselling Society | Expanding Accessible Mental Health Counselling: Matching our Capacity to Trends | 2023 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Children | With the economy, pandemic and world geo-political instability, everyone’s mental health and wellness is being tested on a daily basis. HNCS exists to provide barrier-reduced access to mental health counselling for Victoria-area residents regardless of an individual’s ability to afford it. The Victoria Foundation supported our Accessible Counselling Program in 2022. We have continued to see growing demand for this program. We need to expand our counselling capacity to meet trends to reduce wait times. |
| Impulse Theatre Society | Impulse Theatre Public Programming | 2023 | Grantee | Arts & Culture | LGBTQIA2S+ | Impulse Theatre Society is requesting financial support to assist in delivery of its public programming in the Capital Regional District. The programming includes the creation and production of new performing arts projects, community engagement and builder initiatives, and the presentation of its annual arts worker-focused festival, Peek Fest. |
| INDIGENOUS PERSPECTIVES SOCIETY, CENTER OF EXCELLENCE IN COMMUNITY EDUCATION | Coming In: Peer Allyship with Two-Spirit and Indigenous LGBTQI* youth | 2023 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | Indigenous People | We are seeking funding to offer a free youth-focused and youth-led workshop called Coming In: Peer Allyship with Two-Spirit and Indigenous LGBTQI* Youth during Pride month. 2023. This enriched workshop uplifts resilience, leadership, and artistry while exploring the challenges and opportunities faced by Two Spirit and Indigenous LGBTQI* youth. Highlights include Two Spirit Elder and youth panel discussions, a Two Spirit performer showcase over catered lunch, and extensive opportunity for sharing wisdom and peer support. |
| Industrial Areas Foundation Canada | Becoming Greater through Equity Diversity and Inclusion | 2023 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | Seniors | The requested funding will allow Greater Victoria Acting Together to increase the representation of equity-deserving groups among its membership and leadership, and allow the organization to better represent their interests. The funding will be used to undertake consultations to assess inclusionary policies and practices, inform changes to policies and practices, and support coaching and training for staff, leaders and volunteers to build equity, diversity and inclusion. |
| INSPIREHEALTH SOCIETY | Supportive Cancer Care in the Capital Region District | 2023 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Seniors | InspireHealth aims to improve the quality of life of people living with cancer through compassionate, evidence-informed, person-centered supportive care. Our team of supportive care physicians, clinical counselors, registered dietitians, and exercise therapists provide patients comprehensive programs and services, including group classes, workshops, and individual consultations. Funding from the Victoria Foundation will sustain our services for cancer patients in the capital region. |
| INTER-CULTURAL ASSOCIATION OF GREATER VICTORIA | ICA – HR Capacity and Leadership Development | 2023 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Getting Started in our Community | Newcomers, Immigrants and Refugees | This operational project will increase ICA’s Human Resources capacity through a new Human Resource Generalist position that focuses on organizational culture, onboarding, retention, training and leadership. In addition, senior leadership staff, ICA will participate in a Leadership 360 Review. This process will involve external coaching and development of leadership skills with peer input. Through this process leaders gain skills, talents, and expertise that improve their overall effectiveness within the organization. |
| INTREPID THEATRE COMPANY SOCIETY | Festival Hub & Volunteer Centre | 2023 | Grantee | Economy | LGBTQIA2S+ | Intrepid Staff is currently sitting in the Theatre lobby which is not a comfortable working environment and affects when/how we can rent and use our venue. To accommodate staff and act as a volunteer centre, site office and festival hub, Intrepid has leased the space next door. We have also created a new staff position to grow our our programming and rentals now that we can move administrative offices out of the lobby. |
| Island Community Mental Health Association | Peer Support Program | 2023 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Health & Wellness | Persons with Disabilities | The ICMHA Peer Support program is moving into its second and final year. Year one of the project allowed ICMHA to validate and legitimize the role of paid peer support work in a unionized community mental health setting. Our intention is to incorporate the pilot into existing programming contracts with Island health. This grant will provide valuable bridge funding in support of creating long term peer support services at ICMHA and the community at large. |
| ISLAND DEAF AND HARD OF HEARING CENTRE ASSOCIATION | Sound of Change Initiative | 2023 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Standard of Living | Seniors | The Sound of Change Initiative provides access to free refurbished hearing aids and hearing health services for low income and vulnerable seniors across the Capital Region. Access to remediation supported with rehabilitation services can reduce isolation and the detriments of health caused by hearing loss; improve safety, self esteem and quality of life. The Initiative will recycle and refurbish hearing aids and devices, provide free batteries and ongoing hearing health services and hearing aids. |
| ISLAND KIDS CANCER ASSOCIATION | Island Kids Cancer Association Staff Expansion Project (Program Development Coordinator). | 2023 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Children | Island Kids Cancer Association (IKCA) is seeking $30,000 to support hiring a new Program Development Coordinator (PDC). The PDC will take pressure off overloaded positions in our small staff and help IKCA achieve important organizational goals like the cultivation and development of strategic partnerships. This expanded staff capacity is necessary for IKCA to respond to the growing demand for our services in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. |
| ISLAND METIS FAMILY & COMMUNITY SERVICES SOCIETY | Community Kitchen Program | 2023 | Grantee | Arts & Culture | Indigenous People | The community kitchen program will teach and allow youth to practice food skills, such as food handling, food preparation, storing of food, and how to clean and sanitize the workspace. It will develop their cooking competency as they work through the recipes provided while receiving supervision and guidance. The program aims to educate them on health, nutrition, and diet which can lead to an improved sense of well-being by eating healthier. |
| ISLAND SEXUAL HEALTH SOCIETY | Connected: Youth Agents of Change | 2023 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Youth | Connected: Youth Agents of Change training provides training for youth volunteers at Saanich Peninsula Youth Health Clinic (SPYHC) to become skilled in issues connected to adolescent sexuality such as pregnancy prevention, safer sex, gender and orientation, communication, consent and community mapping. The volunteers will employ their knowledge and skills to provide community education campaigns and peer-based education to clients who access clinical sexual health care. |
| JAMES BAY NEW HORIZONS SOCIETY | James Bay New Horizons Needs Assessment | 2023 | Grantee | Housing | Seniors | Post Covid, we have seen a real change in the ability of seniors to afford the comforts of a full life. Many struggle to make ends meet, having to decide if they can pay rent, buy groceries or medication. We would like to do a needs assessment to see if it would be feasible to combiner affordable housing / senior centre attached to meet the needs of an aging population. |
| JEWISH COMMUNITY CENTRE OF VICTORIA | Victoria International Jewish Film Festival | 2023 | Grantee | Arts & Culture | Black and People of Colour | The VIJFF, via a festival program of “Captivating Cultural Cinema” community-minded events (in-person screenings, music, discussions, multicultural food), including a family film event and a high school-collaborative multi-cultural/multi-faith event, and online screenings): |
| JUNIOR ACHIEVEMENT OF BRITISH COLUMBIA | Financial Literacy for Capital Regional District youth | 2023 | Grantee | Learning | Youth | There is a gap in the core school curriculum around financial education. Developing financial literacy skills in youth includes not only increasing their financial knowledge, but also establishing attitudes and habits around setting goals, making informed decisions and planning for the future. This includes the types of decisions youth may encounter in the coming years, such as getting a summer or part-time job, managing their own money, and planning for post-secondary education or training. |
| Kidsport Canada | So ALL Kids Can Play season-of-sport registration support | 2023 | Grantee | Sports & Recreation | Children | KidSport Greater Victoria exists to ensure that children and youth from local families experiencing financial need are not limited from opportunities to participate in, and benefit from, organized sport. We are seeking funding support for our core program – providing season-of-sport registration fees to help individual kids access their chosen organized sport pursuits. In 2023, we aim to provide up to $700 in season-of-sport registration fees to each eligible child who requests our assistance. |
| LDABC The Learning Curve Society | Child, Youth and Families Support Program | 2023 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Getting Started in our Community | Children | This funding will provide a flexible range of support options for families and care providers caring for children experiencing learning and behavior challenges that are negatively impacting their emotional/social/mental wellbeing, their learning, over all development and relationships. The programming is developmentally sound, strength based and designed to reduce frustration, stress, and increase resilience so that challenges/barriers are reduced or overcome. Parents and care providers will gain confidence in their capacity to support their child(ren). |
| LESTER B. PEARSON COLLEGE OF THE PACIFIC AND UNITED WORLD COLLEGES (CANADA) INC. – COLLEGE DU PACIFIQUE LESTER B. PEARSON ET COLLEGES DU MONDE UNI (CANADA) INC. | Climate Action Leadership Diploma Program at Pearson College UWC | 2023 | Grantee | Learning | Youth | The Climate Action Leadership Diploma (CALD), designed and piloted by Pearson College UWC in 2022, is a two-year pre-university program that equips youth, ages 16-19, around the world, with the skills and experience to pursue a future career in climate action. Funding from the Victoria Foundation will help continue the delivery of the CALD program in its second year and establish additional partnerships in the community to further grow the network and broaden the impact. |
| Living Edge Community Church | Living Edge Neighbourhood Markets in the CRD 2023 | 2023 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | General Population | The Living Edge Community Food Program is designed to create food equality for all in the CRD by collecting recovered food and distributing for free at seven weekly Living Edge Neighbourhood Markets. |
| LOAVES AND FISHES COMMUNITY FOOD BANK SOCIETY | Capital Region Food 4 All | 2023 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | General Population | Loaves & Fishes Community Food Bank is requesting funds to help offset the expense of providing free food to the currently 8 other charities located in the capital region we serve. In 2022 Loaves & Fishes sourced, sorted and distributed $303,097 worth of food for other charities in the capital region. We are seeking $20,000 to help cover costs to continue this service for 2 more years. |
| LUTHER COURT SOCIETY | LCS-CHC Building Capacity and Enhancing Community Wellbeing | 2023 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Health & Wellness | Seniors | The Luther Court Society (LCS) Community Health Centre (CHC) provides intergenerational clinical care to the communities of Gordon Head Shelbourne and Oak Bay, with seniors’ care and people with mental health concerns identified as priority populations. This grant will support the CHC to strengthen professional and community collaborations in efforts to enhance wellness and build capacity within our local communities and beyond. |
| Makeway Charitable Society | A Conversational Workshop Series Re-Imagining Futures Where Needs Are Met | 2023 | Grantee | Housing | Black and People of Colour | What We Need is a conversational workshop series that invites frontline workers and those with lived experience of homelessness to reimagine futures where their needs are met. This solution-focused program fosters community support, identifies pressing needs, and encourages creative expression to share learnings with the wider public, empowering participants and inspiring community action. |
| MARCH OF DIMES CANADA | After Stroke BC | 2023 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | General Population | The March of Dimes Canada, in partnership with the Stroke Recovery Program of BC, have developed a ‘made in BC’ version of the After Stroke program. This funding will enhance the core elements of this program – After Stroke Coordinators, who provide personalized support to stroke survivors and their families and the suite of community-based stroke recovery programs, both in-person and virtual, to residents of the south Vancouver Island region. |
| MARITIME MUSEUM OF BRITISH COLUMBIA | MMBC Marketing Plan and Community Outreach | 2023 | Grantee | Learning | General Population | We are requesting funding for a two-pronged project related to marketing and community outreach. First, we are seeking support to develop a new annual marketing plan and to upgrade our website, which will strengthen our long-term resiliency by identifying how to best market our community services. We’re also seeking support for our ongoing effort to provide free outreach programs to clients/participants involved with non-profits and expanding those programs by building relationships with more organizations. |
| MAYNE ISLAND ASSISTED LIVING SOCIETY | Mayne Island: The Most Age-friendly Community in Canada | 2023 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | General Population | The Mayne Island Collective seeks to establish a protocol, process, tools and initiate concrete action to move most if not all of the 40+ volunteer societies, non-profits and informal organizations of the island toward the right side of the Collaboration Spectrum with the aim of supporting Mayne Island to become “the most age-friendly community in Canada”. Right now we mainly compete, co-exist, and communicate. The goal is to move collaboration to Coordinate, Collaborate and Integrate. |
| MAYNE ISLAND CONSERVANCY SOCIETY | Mayne Island Community Stewardship Program | 2023 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Environmental Sustainability | General Population | The Mayne Island Community Stewardship Program engages the community of |
| Mennonite Central Committee (MCC) British Columbia | New Foundations – Financial Literacy for Westshore Newcomer Families | 2023 | Grantee | Getting Started in our Community | Newcomers, Immigrants and Refugees | New Foundations is a poverty reduction initiative that aims to improve self-sufficiency for low income newcomer families through social inclusion, financial literacy and asset-building. Children from these newcomer families will grow up in more financially secure households and later become contributing citizens as parents learn to budget, save for the future and are prepared for the Canadian workplace. |
| MENTAL HEALTH RECOVERY PARTNERS SOCIETY – SOUTH VANCOUVER ISLAND | Relational Practice for Mental Health Recovery & Transformation | 2023 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Persons with Disabilities | This grant will facilitate ongoing low-barrier, no-fee access to support groups, wellness training & 1:1 peer support for people living with mental illness, with or without substance use, regardless of their diagnosis, as well as their families. |
| Move Adapted Fitness And Rehabilitation Society Of B.C. | Supported Therapeutic Exercise Program (STEP) | 2023 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Persons with Disabilities | Funding from this grant will allow MOVE to continue to provide barrier free physical activity to individuals in our community living with disabilities, in addition to providing subsidized nutrition and one-to-one therapy services. Additionally, this grant will allow MOVE to to pay staff and student co-op placements a more competitive wage, which in turn will benefit members due to less turnover with staffing. |
| Municipality of Saanich | Barrier-Free Community Arts Group: Art Hive 55+ | 2023 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Seniors | Art Hive 55+ provides a welcoming facilitated space for older adults to explore and create meaningful art and craft, socialize, and build relationships in a friendly, supported, no barrier environment. Participants receive positive mentoring from professional artist facilitators and free access to materials and refreshments. Participants will have the opportunity to participate in a gallery display at our Recreation and Arts Centre and share their creative expression with the community. |
| Mustard Seed Street Church | Food Share Network 2023-2024 | 2023 | Grantee | Standard of Living | General Population | Working to reduce food insecurity in the CRD through increased community access to nourishing food, collaborating on food education and knowledge transfer, and advocating for the systemic change necessary to carry us forward to a food secure future. |
| North Saanich Parks Ecosystem Restoration Society | Invasive Species Removal in 10 North Saanich Municipal Parks | 2023 | Grantee | Environmental Sustainability | General Population | Support for an environmental non-profit organization with a mandate to research, protect and restore the ecosystems of North Saanich parks and other local lands to a sustainable natural state. Funding for a staff person to provide administrative support for the group and to manage aspects of field operations. Funds also for tools, equipment, office, memberships, training, plants and supplies. |
| OAKLANDS COMMUNITY ASSOCIATION | OCA – Essential Operating Costs | 2023 | Grantee | Getting Started in our Community | Children | OCA is requesting grant funding to support the ongoing operation of the following essential service portfolios: childcare, food security, and community markets which serve more than two thousand community members in and around the Oaklands Neighborhood. |
| Olive Branch Revival Foundation | Supporting Newcomers to Navigate Integration Challenges | 2023 | Grantee | Getting Started in our Community | Newcomers, Immigrants and Refugees | Olive Branch Revival Foundation (OBRF) provides wrap-around services to Newcomers and their families in a variety of ways, building community integration and supporting people going through culture shock and identity crisis. In 2023, they will focus on supporting newcomers in our region with mental health supports to reduce stigma and increase awareness, provide education on a variety of issues including navigating health care, end of life care and legal services, and acknowledging community leaders. |
| ONEABILITY FOUNDATION | OneAbility Shared Services | 2023 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Persons with Disabilities | OneAbility provides support to members who deliver adaptive sport and recreation programming, services and resources to participants in their respective communities. The purpose of this grant request is to enable OneAbility to provide shared services and supports to Network members within the collective to enhance their capacity, skills and ability to deliver sport and recreation programming, services and resources to people living with disabilities. |
| OPEN SPACE ARTS SOCIETY | Creative Accessibility Audit | 2023 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Belonging & Engagement | Persons with Disabilities | Open Space is upgrading its facility to improve access to our programming and operation spaces. We are working with Accessibility Consultant, Regan Shrumm to conduct a Creative Accessibility Audit that will invite a local cohort of disabled individuals with lived experience to consult on Open Space’s current accessibility circumstances, as well as learn and develop skills for further regional organizational audits. |
| Operation Freedom Paws Canada Society | Improving Accessibility for Participants | 2023 | Grantee | Safety | Persons with Disabilities | Enabling potential clients living in the Capital Region to access the service dog program offered by Operation Freedom Paws by supporting travel costs. We support veterans, First Responders, RCMP, civilians, children and youth affected by psychological trauma. |
| OUR PLACE SOCIETY | Our Place Community Centre’s New Entrance & Protocols | 2023 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Safety | Indigenous People | Our Place Society (OPS) is developing a plan of action to change how vulnerable people access the building at 919 Pandora Avenue. A new intake process, monitored by an Intake Resource Navigator Worker (IRNW) will be situated at the front of the community centre entrance. This person will welcome and direct Our Place family members to services and connect them to appropriate team members for triage. |
| PACIFIC ANIMAL THERAPY SOCIETY | Pacific Animal Therapy Society: PATS dogs delivering pet therapy services. | 2023 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Persons with Disabilities | The Pacific Animal Therapy Society (PATS) is requesting $30,000 to support our paid program administrator position, fundamental to PATS’ ability to deliver quality, community-based pet therapy services. This is the only paid position in an otherwise volunteer organization; the program administrator position is critical in coordinating services, supporting our teams of handlers and their dogs, and administering PATS health and safety policies to ensure highly beneficial and safe pet therapy experiences. |
| PACIFIC CENTRE FAMILY SERVICES ASSOCIATION | Intake and Referral Services | 2023 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Health & Wellness | Persons with Disabilities | The Victoria Foundation Vital Services Grant will enable Pacific Centre Family Services Association (PCFSA) to increase capacity in the Intake and Referral Services program so that we can respond to requests for service in a timely way and provide crisis support and resourcing for individuals in immediate need. We will be able to offer single session therapy for those who are waiting for longer term counselling. |
| Pacific Institute For Sport Excellence Society | Belonging and Reconciliation at PISE | 2023 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Health & Wellness | Indigenous People | With our ongoing work in inclusion, equity and diversity, this grant will focus on our relationship with the Indigenous Community and establishing partnerships and initiatives to help with Truth and Reconciliation. |
| Pacific Perinatal Foundation | Pacific Perinatal Foundation – Operational Support | 2023 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Women | The Pacific Perinatal Foundation (formally known as Healing Hearts Foundation est. 2015) was initiated by community volunteers with lived experience of infertility, pregnancy and infant loss (PAIL) who recognized a need for support. This Grant would provide funding for organizational capacity building to include staffing, development of peer support addressing recognized needs, and facilitate access to clinical counselling designed explicitly to support pregnancy and infant loss/trauma. |
| Pauquachin First Nation | BO?E?EN (Pauquachin) Good Food Box | 2023 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Indigenous People | This grant would enable our organization, the Pauquachin Health Centre, to support our community’s health and wellbeing by offering regular distributions of fresh, healthy produce. By offering food resources at home in our community, we can reach those individuals and families who face various barriers which prevent them from accessing outside resources. |
| PEERS VICTORIA RESOURCES SOCIETY | Cultural and Peer Led Training and Outreach | 2023 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Indigenous People | This funding will support a culturally drive, peer led outreach program for unhoused persons in the Capital Regional District. Peers Victoria will train and provide funding for persons with lived experience of sex work, homelessness, and substance use to deliver outreach supports to members of the unhoused community. An elder will provide support to the staff and peer workers. |
| PENDER ISLAND CHILD CARE SOCIETY | Supporting Strong Foundations for Families | 2023 | Grantee | Getting Started in our Community | Children | This grant will support our organization in facilitating inclusive drop in family resource programs and parent education courses for parents/caregivers and their children ages 0-5 years. These programs connect community members with each other as well as acting as a referral agency for other services. Having a safe and inclusive space for families to participate in their community fosters a sense of wellness and belonging. |
| PENDER ISLANDS CONSERVANCY ASSOCIATION | Community conservation initiatives supporting local environmental protection and community resilience | 2023 | Grantee | Environmental Sustainability | General Population | We provide our community with conservation engagement opportunities that promote environmental and human health. Funds will allow us to meet demand for learning and implementation of ecological principles in land restoration from backyards to community parklands, increase our capacity to facilitate ecosystem protection by private landholders through conservation covenants, and foster engagement in conservation through education and enhanced citizen science programs. |
| PENINSULA STREAMS SOCIETY | ‘Engaging Young Stewards’ Environmental Education Program | 2023 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Environmental Sustainability | Youth | Every year, our staff and volunteers deliver environmental education programs, with fun and engaging indoor and outdoor activities, to more than 1,200 students at over 15 schools. We also coordinate events such as watershed model presentations and invasive species removal projects with local groups like the Girl Guides and Scouts. Our programs are offered to public, private and specialty schools and community groups. |
| Pepaken Hautw Food Systems Education Foundation | PEPAKEN TE TENEW: Restoration & Resilience in the WSANEC Homelands | 2023 | Grantee | Environmental Sustainability | Indigenous People | Our project brings WSANEC community knowledge keepers, ecosystem restoration specialists, community groups, post secondary students and WSANEC youth together to heal land in WSANEC territory for the interwoven purposes of indigenous food sovereignty and ecosystem restoration. We train participants in an ecosystem restoration model with a strong foundation in indigenous land sovereignty to provide a model for communities, organizations and governments, while building increased capacity for cultural ecological resilience in the WSANEC community and beyond. |
| Pepaken Hautw Food Systems Education Foundation | PEPAKEN CEN,TOL TTE STELITKEL: Blossoming out with the Children | 2023 | Grantee | Learning | Indigenous People | The PEPAKEN HAUTW Native Plants & Garden Program provides participatory education workshops for WSANEC School Board students to learn about healthy & traditional foods in a safe and welcoming space. Students also have the opportunity to do the healing work of ecosystem restoration at SNIDCEL (first WSANEC village site) and other special places in the WSANEC homelands. |
| Physical Literacy For Life | Wellness through Community Connections: A Newcomer Initiative through Physical Activity | 2023 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Newcomers, Immigrants and Refugees | The intersectoral group will develop a strategic plan to provide newcomers to Greater Victoria with opportunities to establish social connection and a sense of belonging through sport and physical activity experiences. The project will involve identifying and understanding the barriers to physical activity involvement that newcomers face, seeking out possible solutions to reduce those barriers, and outlining strategic actions that engage community partners to build their collective capacity to better support newcomers to the region. |
| Planet Earth Poetry Reading Series Society | Literary Lifeline: Poetry Community Outreach | 2023 | Grantee | Arts & Culture | Seniors | This grant will keep our weekly poetry reading series alive, a vital part of Greater Victoria’s literary community. It will pay poets from across BC and Canada travel costs and fees, bursaries for marginalized writers to attend workshops and retreats, and it will provide a much-deserved honorarium to our artistic director to enable her to continue in her position. |
| PTARMIGAN ARTS SOCIETY | Community Arts for Resilience and Engagement | 2023 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | Persons with Disabilities | This grant will allow Ptarmigan to provide accessible and interactive community arts workshops, with a focus on marginalized and disadvantaged members of our community. These workshops are designed to inspire creativity, joy and mental wellness and contribute to quality of life and sense of community belonging. Our goal is to use the power of the arts to help all in our community to feel healthier, happier and more engaged in their communities. |
| RAD Recreation Adapted Society | Shared Access to Outdoor Recreation: Assistive Recreational Equipment Partnership | 2023 | Grantee | Sports & Recreation | Persons with Disabilities | This project will support people with mobility challenges to access parks, mobility corridors, trails and beaches by providing free loans of specialized outdoor recreational equipment. Through a partnership with the Victoria Tool Library, the grant will help RAD increase the quality of life for those with short-term and permanent mobility impairments by reducing the financial barrier and increasing access to assistive recreation devices. |
| RAINCOAST CONSERVATION FOUNDATION | Forest Conservation Program | 2023 | Grantee | Environmental Sustainability | General Population | The Forest Conservation Program (FCP) seeks to strengthen protection and stewardship of globally rare and locally threatened Coastal Douglas-fir forests and associated habitats characteristic to British Columbia’s south coast. With a primary focus on the Southern Gulf Islands and a growing purview throughout the Capital Regional District, the FCP aims to build bridges between geographically siloed communities and implement regional approaches for safeguarding precious coastal habitats. |
| Red Cedar Cafe Association | Building food security through low-barrier meal delivery | 2023 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | General Population | This grant will help cover the rising costs of running our free, low-barrier meal delivery program and supporting the staff and volunteers who make it happen. The Red Cedar Cafe frozen meal program is unique; based on the principles of mutual aid and the belief that everyone deserves access to high quality, nutritious food, our culinary team makes 1000 meals per week from donated and diverted food for delivery to people’s doors across Victoria. |
| SAANICH COMMUNITY LEGACY FOUNDATION | Wheels for Recovery | 2023 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Safety | Persons with Disabilities | Wheels For Recovery (WFR) is a transportation service for people living with Substance Use Disorders to support them to get to appointments (e.g., medical, social services, correctional, housing), resources (e.g., shelters, food banks, support groups), jobs, and family. Clients receive more than just a ride: they have access to referrals, basic needs, support, and advocacy. WFR reduces missed appointments, improves client engagement and retention in care, and helps clients meet their goals and obligations. |
| SALT SPRING ISLAND PUBLIC LIBRARY ASSOCIATION | Revitalizing the Library Children’s Area: Accessibility, Engagement and Indigenous-focused | 2023 | Grantee | Learning | Children | Our children’s area of the library needs new and updated shelving and seating that is appropriated sized and designed for accessibility, positive engagement and safety. We plan to incorporate authentic local Indigenous design elements to bring awareness to local Indigenous culture. |
| Saturna Island Marine Research And Education Society | Building Sustainability for SIMRES, a small non-profit on Saturna Island. | 2023 | Grantee | Environmental Sustainability | General Population | SIMRES has been very successful over the last three years, but our volunteers & Board are stretched thin, especially during the busy summer period. We want to improve our organizational stability and sustainability by adding administrative support. We have had a part-time Administrative Assistant funded by a grant ending in May. This new grant will build on that experience. Depending on skills and aptitude, the role may include some social media activity. |
| Scale Institute Society | Mapping non-profit owned assets | 2023 | Grantee | Economy | General Population | We are interested in mapping the current and existing non-profit-owned buildings and real estate in the region to understand which may be at risk of privatization. We would map using public records, surveys and interviews, and produce a report that outlines areas of risk of loss and potential strategies for maintaining these assets. The goal is to understand the current state in order to outline action for maintaining and increasing non-profit-owned assets. |
| Scouts Canada | Strengthening youth health through outdoor adventure, community and skill building | 2023 | Grantee | Sports & Recreation | Youth | Our goal as Scouting groups in Oak Bay (5th Garry Oak) and Victoria (2nd Fort Victoria) is to support a diverse community of youth through leadership development in the outdoors. Using a youth-led mixture of adventure planning, skills mastery, community service, environmental stewardship and adult mentorship, improved youth mental and physical health is the ultimate focus. In these post-COVID days, we support kids to get off their screens and get outdoors. |
| Shelbourne Community Kitchen Society | Shelbourne Community Kitchen – Setting Up For Long Term Resilience | 2023 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Standard of Living | General Population | This grant will support The Kitchen in providing access to nutritious food and opportunities to broaden skills around preparing and growing food for its more than 1150 participants. Funds will be used for general operating costs such as food, rent, supplies, and utilities. It will also support funding towards a vital office administrator staff position and honorariums for our valued participant volunteers who take on identified leadership roles. |
| SIERRA CLUB OF BRITISH COLUMBIA FOUNDATION | Building Environmental Sector Capacity to Engage with Indigenous Law | 2023 | Grantee | Environmental Sustainability | General Population | Sierra Club BC is seeking capacity funding to work alongside the Indigenous Law Research Unit (ILRU – UVic) over the course of 12 months, to develop staff competency to better understand what constitutes an Indigenous legal order. |
| Singyourjoy Young Adult Chorus Society | Rebuilding for Resilience – SingYourJoy | 2023 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | Youth | This grant would secure a sustainable foundation for the SIngYourJoy Young Adult Chorus, which is still recovering from loss of singers and audiences during the pandemic. The choir is in a rebuilding phase that has gone well in its initial year of post-pandemic recruitment, rehearsal and performance, but remains financially fragile. |
| SOAP FOR HOPE CANADA SOCIETY | Adapting to ensure Community Facilities receive essential hygiene products. | 2023 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | General Population | The hotel industry is shifting from hotel size amenities to refillable products. This shift has caused us to adapt in order to service a number of Community Facilities working with street entrenched people. Also, rising prices and a high inflation rate has more people accessing food banks and other organizations for a hand-up. We know if we provide essential hygiene products, family can use their stretched dollars for other essentials including food and shelter. |
| Sooke Autism Support Society | Adults with ASD & Other Special Needs Community Group | 2023 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | Persons with Disabilities | This grant will be used to establish regular Social Group Activities & Community Outings for adults aged 18 -30 with ASD as well as, other special needs living in Sooke. |
| SOOKE FAMILY RESOURCE SOCIETY | Pre-Postnatal Education/Outreach and Youth Navigator/Outreach Staff | 2023 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Women | Pre-Postnatal Education/Outreach and Youth Navigator/Outreach in the greater Sooke to Port Renfrew communities are vital supports provided by Sooke Family Resource Society in order to help increase protective factors in relation to the social determinants of health in our communities. |
| SOOKE REGION COMMUNITIES HEALTH NETWORK COOPERATIVE | Sooke Region Food Allocation Collaboration | 2023 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | General Population | Firstly, Regional Food Service Providers identified the need to establish logistical networks to get food that has been rescued in Victoria to the Sooke Region and distribute it to the various food service providers in a more efficient and cohesive manner. Secondly, facilitation of food distribution from existing and upcoming community food gardens and private gardens. Thirdly, intergenerational and intercultural community gathering meals and food preservation for more social connection, nutritional awareness and income savings. |
| Sooke Shelter Society | Mental Health and Addictions Worker | 2023 | Grantee | Housing | Indigenous People | Our MHA worker motivates, assists, and instructs clients with the activities of daily living for improved quality of life, stability and independence for their clients. The MHA worker provides support for persons with complex needs in a residential, community-based facility. Participates in the planning, development, implementation, delivery, and modification of services by responding to identified client needs, within the program’s guidelines. Escorts clients to off-site programs, appointments and other planned events. |
| Stigma-Free Society | Stigma-Free School Programs – Victoria | 2023 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Youth | This grant would support the delivery of the following: virtual school presentations by a diverse speakers’ pool sharing powerful personal stories about stigma/mental health with students; sustaining the online Student Mental Health Toolkit resource with accessible content relevant to BC youth, educators and parents; integrated teacher support including newly offered professional development workshops and new peer support fundamentals training; and extended support for schools and students with the new Stigma-Free Schools designation component. |
| Story Studio Writing Society | Sharing Words: Community Literacy and Arts Development Programs | 2023 | Grantee | Getting Started in our Community | Children | Working with a range of community organisations (e.g. GVPL, Victoria Immigrant and Refugee Centre Society), we will collaboratively deliver literacy and arts workshops to youth (ages 5-17). These workshops bring together educators, writers and illustrators with youth from under-resourced communities, such as newcomers. Using a field-tested approach that combines fun and learning, young participants will create their own individual books that will be published by Story Studio. |
| Story Studio Writing Society | Stronger Together: Developing Literacy Capacity for Southern Vancouver Island. | 2023 | Grantee | Getting Started in our Community | General Population | Over the past year, the Stronger Together project has brought the entire literacy community together, building capacity through shared resources, networking and co-creation of projects. A literacy forum bringing together the literacy organizations of southern Vancouver Island will occur in Fall 2023, with the support of the Vancouver Foundation. We seek funds to take the community goals set at the forum and bring them to life, through the work of a Community Coordinator and Animator. |
| STQEEYE’ LEARNING SOCIETY | Our Grandmothers’ Garden – connecting youth with traditional food systems | 2023 | Grantee | Arts & Culture | Indigenous People | Grandmother’s Garden is a project that creates a safe, accessible space for Indigenous and non-indigenous youth to learn about Garry Oak ecosystems and food gardens through the sharing of traditional practices, cultural teachings that enhance Indigenous food sovereignty and security. |
| TAKE A HIKE YOUTH MENTAL HEALTH FOUNDATION | Take a Hike South Island | 2023 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Youth | This grant will support Take a Hike Youth Mental Health Foundation to provide critical mental health and wellbeing supports to vulnerable youth and their families. We do this through our evidence-based program model that incorporates full-time clinical counselling and outdoor experiential learning into an alternative education classroom. |
| The ArtsREACH Society | artsREACH Workshops 2023 | 2023 | Grantee | Getting Started in our Community | Children | The $25,000 will provide funds for the workshops we provide – see below for more details about the workshops. The funds are needed to purchase supplies, insurance, media expenses and instructor fees. |
| THE BELFRY THEATRE SOCIETY | Community Connections at the Belfry Theatre | 2023 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Arts & Culture | Newcomers, Immigrants and Refugees | The first of a three-year Community Connections project, that enhances, empowers, and magnifies the creative voices of equity-seeking communities in Greater Victoria. Year One focuses on Newcomers, Refugees and Immigrants. |
| THE BELFRY THEATRE SOCIETY | Intersectionality Queer Community Building Through Nourishment, Art and Connection | 2023 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Belonging & Engagement | LGBTQIA2S+ | Plenty Collective is requesting funding for events fostering arts-based community connection and wellness, with the support of the Belfry Theatre. |
| The Board Of Education Of School District No. 61 (Greater Victoria) | Welcome and Learning Centre for New Immigrant and Refugee Students | 2023 | Grantee | Getting Started in our Community | Newcomers, Immigrants and Refugees | The Welcome and Learning Centre in the Victoria School District #61 is a new program as of September 2022. Unique to Vancouver Island, it is offered as an option to new immigrant and refugee students and their families to help ease the transition to the school system in Victoria. |
| The Board Of Education Of School District No. 63 (Saanich) | PENINSULA “1000 X 5” Children’s Book Recycling Project | 2023 | Grantee | Getting Started in our Community | Children | The PENINSULA “1000 X 5” Project is entirely reliant upon grants and financial donations from agencies, service clubs and individuals to meet its annual operational cost of $20,700. If granted, funds from the Victoria Foundation will be used to help offset the cost of leadership/coordination. |
| THE CANADIAN RED CROSS SOCIETY: LA Société CANADIENNE DE LA CROIX-ROUGE | A New Equipment Disinfection Machine for the Victoria HELP Office | 2023 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Seniors | This project will fund the purchase of a Hubscrub, an industrial disinfection machine used to clean nearly 15,000 articles of medical equipment returned to the Victoria Health Equipment Loan Program (HELP) each year. The new machine will replace an aging Hubscrub that has begun to break down more frequently, slowing our ability to rapidly reprocess equipment and quickly get it back on the shelves for loan to the Victoria seniors who need it. |
| THE CAPITAL REGION PROSTATE CENTRE | Accessible and Inclusive Prostate Cancer Materials for Indigenous Patients. | 2023 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Health & Wellness | Indigenous People | Island Prostate Centre (IPC) is seeking a $12,000 grant from the Victoria Foundation to make our patient materials (brochures, handouts, website) more accessible and inclusive for indigenous patients on Vancouver Island. This funding will support the review and translation of materials by a suitable consultant, updates by a graphic/web designer, increased representation of indigenous patients in our photo library, and the reprinting of updated materials. |
| THE CIRCLE SALT SPRING EDUCATION SOCIETY | The Respect Project: In-School Social-Emotional Programming for Grades 5-7 | 2023 | Grantee | Getting Started in our Community | Youth | The Respect Project is an in-class program for grades 5/6/7 students that is designed to teach about the foundational role that respect plays in their lives and in their communities. The goal for participating students is to understand and experience healthy and respectful relationships, to become more aware of their identity, feelings and biases, to challenge assumptions and stereotypes, and to develop verbal, non-verbal and online communication skills. |
| THE CRIDGE CENTRE FOR THE FAMILY | Employment Program for Survivors of Brain Injury | 2023 | Grantee | Standard of Living | Persons with Disabilities | We are requesting support to develop and implement an employment program for Brain Injury (BI) survivors in the form of a social enterprise in partnership with Cedar Hill Recreation Centre. We currently have approximately 100 BI clients, 60% of whom are interested in receiving training and work experience. This grant will fund 10 participants in receiving training and work experience, plus provide capacity for ongoing training for clients and community members needing employment training. |
| The Farmlands Trust (Greater Victoria) Society | FLT Society’s Farm Program; Producing Food for Those in Need | 2023 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | General Population | As part of our mission, the Farmlands Trust (FLT) Society produces food for those in need in the Greater Victoria region (e.g., homeless and food insecure populations), through our “field to plate” initiative at the historic Newman Farm. This request is for funds to aid in the continuation and expansion of this initiative through intensive organic pollinator and wildlife-friendly farming practices. |
| THE GALIANO CLUB | Feeding the Community | 2023 | Grantee | Standard of Living | General Population | This grant will support food security and social inclusion for Galiano Island residents through a variety of initiatives. Examples of these initiatives include a meals program, community events (75 per year), school garden, school lunches, community greenhouse, gleaning, equipment library, workshops and a food bank. |
| THE GORGE VIEW SOCIETY | Housing and Navigation Assistant, Gorge View Society | 2023 | Grantee | Housing | Seniors | The Gorge View Society is working to increase the number of affordable homes available at Chown Place through a City of Victoria approved redevelopment Master Plan. The Housing Assistant position will support the Society in scaling up its operations. The Assistant will also facilitate connections for Chown Place residents with the supports they need to age healthily in place. |
| THE JOHN HOWARD SOCIETY OF VICTORIA | John Howard Society Victoria- Community, Capacity, Collaboration | 2023 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Persons with Disabilities | The John Howard Society of Victoria has a large array of programs to serve the underserved and the diverse needs and people of Victoria. Programs offered range from Housing Access to Employment to Community Mentorship to Justice Services. This funding will be utilized to build internal capacity through our people and technology, build and foster community relationships, and find meaningful ways to work and collaborate with other organizations to deepen our impact. |
| THE KHALSA DIWAN SOCIETY OF VICTORIA | Celebrate Diversity and Build Bridges with the Community | 2023 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | Newcomers, Immigrants and Refugees | We will be introducing cultural awareness in Sikh faith, fostering relationship building, respect, and inclusion. The fund will be used for serving approximately 800 meals over a 12 month period. |
| THE MARIE ESTHER SOCIETY | Emergency Preparedness Project: Keeping residents and staff safe | 2023 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Health & Wellness | Seniors | Emergency planning and preparedness is integral to healthcare planning. With the vulnerable population at MSMH, the importance is heightened. In the event of a natural disaster or event that compromises the integrity of the building, MSMH needs to be prepared to accommodate residents and staff. This includes food, water, clothing, first aid supplies and communications. These items must be in a location that is easily accessible even if the building is compromised. |
| THE NEW MARINE CENTRE SOCIETY | Experiential ocean education collaboration for social and environmental wellbeing. | 2023 | Grantee | Environmental Sustainability | General Population | The project builds synergistic collaboration between place-based ocean education initiatives that improve well-being of people and ecosystems through hands-on and experiential marine education. Formalized collaboration will strengthen our organizations and increase our collective impact. Aquaria, nature house, school and public education programs are included, building coordinated educational value for the community, enhancing support for environmental conservation, and improving mental well-being of people through exposure to the rich biodiversity of the Salish Sea. |
| The Starfish Environmental Society | Placemaking Leadership Labs for Youth in Victoria and Saanich | 2023 | Grantee | Environmental Sustainability | Youth | The Starfish Canada supports youth to take action on environmental stewardship and climate action, whether locally or globally. Our Placemaking Leadership Labs program deeply engages and activates youth ages 13-29 to bring their perspectives to municipal decision-makers and regional developers to meaningfully integrate into sustainable planning and urban design in the region. |
| THE STORY THEATRE PRODUCTIONS SOCIETY | 23/24 Season – Family and Youth Engagement in the Arts | 2023 | Grantee | Arts & Culture | Children | This grant will support staffing and operational costs for an organization with a primary purpose to serve youth and the next generation. The 23/24 Season will provide highly-accessible artistic opportunities for babies, preschoolers, children, teens, families, libraries, and elementary schools. |
| The Victoria Youth Clinic Society | Exploring Collaborative Youth Care in Downtown Victoria | 2023 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Youth | The VYC has an unprecedented opportunity to provide essential care services to youth in Victoria by expanding available space in 2025, with 7,700 square feet and a 50% reduction in construction costs through HeroWork. To utilize this opportunity, this collaboration will make a plan for this expansion and report on our needs including assessing capacity, prioritising, building connections, and identifying priorities sector-wide regarding space allocation. |
| The Victoria Youth Clinic Society | Fundraising Capacity Building | 2023 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Youth | This funding request will contribute to staffing, program, and operating costs associated with supporting our in-house fund development capabilities. |
| THE VICTORIA YOUTH EMPOWERMENT SOCIETY | Building Staff Capacity through Skills and Wellness Training | 2023 | Grantee | Standard of Living | Youth | This grant will be used to build capacity for front line workers and managers of our essential youth services (drop-in, detox, shelter, counselling, outreach, life-skills, family services, wellness). Our training project will provide specific skills to improve physical, psychological and emotional safety for vulnerable youth, as well as support the VYES staff in their own resilience and sustainability working in this challenging sector. |
| THEATRE SKAM ASSOCIATION | 2023 Operations | 2023 | Grantee | Arts & Culture | Black and People of Colour | Funding supports the ongoing operations of Theatre SKAM, which annually produces two full-length plays, an annual festival, short works on our pop-up theatre, and drama classes. The 2023-24 season marks the first season led by Co-Artistic Directors Hannah Mariko Bell and Logan Swain, who are two members of a shared leadership team that also includes Artistic Associates Pedro Siqueira and Olivia Wheeler. These four artists, from equity-seeking communities, create and produce original new works. |
| THRESHOLD HOUSING SOCIETY | Making Threshold House a Home | 2023 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Housing | Youth | Since implementing the role of House Supervisor at Threshold House – a need realised during the COVID-19 pandemic – youth and staff report finding the house is more welcoming, a place where they experience support and care, and a place they are proud to call home. From organizing the care of shared spaces to invigorating a sense of household community, the House Supervisor makes Threshold House a Home. |
| THRIVE SOCIAL SERVICES SOCIETY | Rise Up Youth Employment Program | 2023 | Grantee | Learning | Youth | We are requesting funds to allow our Rise Up Youth Employment to continue to provide essential youth services to marginalized youth (aged 15 to 25) experiencing a variety of barriers to employment in our community. |
| TOGETHER AGAINST POVERTY SOCIETY (TAPS) | Tenancy Legal Advocacy and Empowerment Project | 2023 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Housing | Black and People of Colour | The Tenant Legal Advocacy and Empowerment Project provides much-needed legal support for low-income tenants in the intensifying housing crisis by challenging unlawful evictions, mediating disputes, and providing assistance with emergency supports so tenants can maintain stable housing despite increasing inflation and the ongoing pandemic. |
| Transition Salt Spring Society | Collective Impact for Real Climate Action | 2023 | Grantee | Environmental Sustainability | General Population | This collaboration supports partners on Salt Spring Island to meet the goals of the Salt Spring Island Climate Action Plan. Real progress related to climate mitigation and adaptation can only be realized through collective efforts in the planning and implementation of complex and interrelated initiatives based in solid collaboration, shared interests and a common understanding of the challenges and opportunities facing our communities due to climate change. |
| UKRAINIAN CATHOLIC PARISH OF ST NICHOLAS | Project Coordinator for Help Ukraine Vancouver Island Society | 2023 | Grantee | Getting Started in our Community | Newcomers, Immigrants and Refugees | Help Ukraine Vancouver Island Society will use the grant to hire a project coordinator who will enhance the organization’s support and resources for newly arrived Ukrainian refugees fleeing the war in Ukraine. The coordinator will manage various tasks such as the weekly mailing, Communication with newcomers, volunteer management, and emergency assistance. The grant will also enable the organization to increase services and invest in newcomers’ well-being. |
| UKRAINIAN CATHOLIC PARISH OF ST NICHOLAS | Supporting Ukrainian families arriving in Victoria capital region | 2023 | Grantee | Getting Started in our Community | Newcomers, Immigrants and Refugees | This grant will support our parish to provide the Ukrainian families with grocery cards, food share programs, shelters support, purchase of transit passes, daycare, emergency housing, medical expenses not covered through the medical plans and other assistance. |
| Umbrella Society For Addictions And Mental Health | Peer Outreach for People Working in the Trades | 2023 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | General Population | This grant will help fund a fulltime dedicated substance use peer outreach worker to reach people working in the trades, including day laborers and construction workers. People working in trades are at a significantly higher risk of death by overdose but less likely to seek help due to factors such as worker isolation and workplace culture, which underscores the need for this program. |
| United For Literacy / Ensemble | Community Literacy Catalyst | 2023 | Grantee | Learning | Indigenous People | Through Community Literacy Catalyst Project (CLC), we partner with Indigenous communities to provide community-strengthening learning opportunities with Indigenous rights, knowledge, language, and culture at the heart of design and delivery. |
| UNIVERSITY OF VICTORIA | Belonging and Engagement: Trauma-informed refugee newcomer community-school relationship building | 2023 | Grantee | Getting Started in our Community | Newcomers, Immigrants and Refugees | Belonging & Engagement: trauma informed Refugee/Newcomer community-school relationship building, will support the building of stronger cultural awareness between refugee/newcomer families and community/school relations. Refugee parents will gain capacity and new spaces will be created to address challenges stemming from lack of cultural awareness and weak anti-racism processes. Renewed communication pathways and greater understanding (and comfort levels) working in trauma-informed manner between refugee/newcomer parents, support workers, teachers, youth, non-newcomer parents and children will be the result. |
| Vancouver Island Counselling Centre For Immigrants And Refugees Association | Mental Health Counselling for Refugees and Immigrants | 2023 | Grantee | Getting Started in our Community | Newcomers, Immigrants and Refugees | Refugees and immigrants face many barriers when getting started in Canada. By eliminating the financial, language and other systemic barriers to accessing culturally appropriate and trauma-informed mental health counselling, VICCIR’s work benefits community wellbeing. |
| VANCOUVER ISLAND KIDS KLUB CENTRE SOCIETY | Kids Klub Brown Bag Lunch Program | 2023 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Children | Kids Klub’s Brown Bag Lunch Program started in the year 2000 and is a free service that provides lunches to elementary and middle schools in the Saanich, Victoria, and Sooke school districts who have identified children coming to school without lunches. This free service delivers over 3500 nutritious lunches to students each month. |
| VANCOUVER ISLAND MEN’S THERAPY CENTRE SOCIETY | Men’s Therapy Centre: No One Left Behind | 2023 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Persons with Disabilities | No One Left Behind provides therapy for survivors of trauma that would otherwise not have access to mental health support. Access to this program is directed towards our most vulnerable community members who face barriers to service access due to social identity. |
| Victoria Arts Council | Education & Outreach Programs | 2023 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Arts & Culture | General Population | The Victoria Arts Council’s educational and outreach programs encompass a monthly lectures series (Creative Mornings) and a quarterly digital magazine (UNTIL), annual Day Without Art / World AIDS Day public film screening of work by HIV+ artists, all of which act as platforms for artistic inquiry and expression as a means of life-long learning. |
| Victoria Arts Council | Greater Access to Creative Reuse Education & Materials | 2023 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Economy | General Population | This grant will support Victoria Arts Council (VAC) in partnership with SUPPLY Victoria Creative Reuse Centre to create greater access to sustainable, creative, and inclusive art-based environmental education and affordable creative materials for artists, students, teachers, families with school-aged children, and marginalized groups. |
| VICTORIA BRAIN INJURY SOCIETY | Student Head Injury Neuro Education (SHINE) | 2023 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Safety | Youth | Student Head Injury Neuro Education (SHINE) is a 70-minute interactive presentation for youth in grade 12 in four school districts in the Capital Region as well as local community sports teams, with a goal of eventually expanding the program to include an adjusted version for youth in grades 6-8. SHINE educates youth on concussion and brain injuries and provides information which will dispel myths about brain injury causes, symptoms, and long-term effects. |
| VICTORIA COALITION FOR SURVIVORS OF TORTURE | The interconnectedness project; the next steps | 2023 | Grantee | Getting Started in our Community | Newcomers, Immigrants and Refugees | Building on the findings and recommendations from the 2022, 2023 Victoria Foundation Project, this grant request seeks to implement the emphasized activities recommended by our stakeholders in order for them to support torture survivors and their families in a more coordinated way. This includes the development of collaborative prevention programs to stop the cycle of abuse and violence that survivors may carry with them into their relationships. The Grant request also includes other objectives. |
| Victoria Community Food Hub Society | Equity Partnership Development Project | 2023 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Indigenous People | To achieve greater equity and justice, traditionally excluded voices and communities need the opportunity to propose and implement their own solutions. Addressing colonial systems in the charitable sector must address barriers to resource distribution to those most impacted. Working in collaboration with the Victoria Foundation, we are developing new ways to fund and and support community led grassroots initiatives towards this goal. |
| Victoria Community Food Hub Society | Good Food Systems Collective Impact Initiative | 2023 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | General Population | Building Capacity for Collective Impact by the Good Food Network to promote healthy, just and sustainable food systems in the Capital Region |
| Victoria Community Food Hub Society | Iye Creative | 2023 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Black and People of Colour | This funding will support our mandate to improve accessibility and equity in the local food system, particularly for vulnerable communities. This grant will be put towards ensuring our team is well-resourced financially so that we can continue to develop and strengthen the Community Supported Agriculture programming, and facilitate land-based, food-centered & health promotion workshops for lifelong skill sharing. |
| VICTORIA COMPOST & CONSERVATION EDUCATION SOCIETY | Compost Education Centre’s Sustainability Superstars Program | 2023 | Grantee | Learning | Children | The Compost Education Centre’s (CEC) Sustainability Superstars Program (SSP) provides educational programs focused on composting, waste reduction, organic gardening, and conservation to children and youth aged 3 to 18 at our site in Victoria and at schools throughout the Capital Region District. This grant will support our organization to increase the impact of the SSP and compensate staff more appropriately. |
| VICTORIA COMPOST & CONSERVATION EDUCATION SOCIETY | Make It Dirt: Integrated Ecological Education in Greater Victoria | 2023 | Grantee | Learning | Youth | The Compost Education Centre (CEC) and Lifecycles Project Society (Lifecycles) are piloting a co-created semester-long experiential learning program, “Make It Dirt”, with high school-aged students in School District 61. Both CEC and Lifecycles have historically served high school-aged students, and through this pilot, the two organizations are collaborating to improve their services and increase impact. |
| VICTORIA CONSERVATORY OF MUSIC | Getting Started Early Childhood Music Education Outreach | 2023 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Getting Started in our Community | Children | The Victoria Conservatory of Music’s Early Childhood Music Education Outreach program provides access to free music education for young children (infant to five years) and their parent(s) through childcare centres and preschools that serve marginalized communities including Indigenous peoples, refugees, teenage mothers, kinship care, military families and children coping with trauma. This specialized outreach initiative helps children build a strong foundation to learn social and cognitive skills to help them reach age-appropriate developmental milestones. |
| VICTORIA COOL AID SOCIETY | REES Outreach and Support Program | 2023 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Housing | Persons with Disabilities | The REES Outreach and Support Program provides direct individualized support to people facing challenges due to mental health, substance use, poverty, |
| VICTORIA DISABILITY RESOURCE CENTRE | Lived Experiences Around Disability | 2023 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | Persons with Disabilities | The initiative is to create a more inclusive and welcoming environment for students with disabilities in the CRD, and for the persons with disabilities in the larger community, by delivering LEAD to youth at schools and at community centres. This grant will allow the VDRC to increase the capacity of the program to meet the increased need. |
| Victoria Festival Of Authors Society | Victoria Festival of Authors 2023 | 2023 | Grantee | Arts & Culture | Persons with Disabilities | Victoria Festival of Authors (VFA) is requesting a grant to assist with accessible festival programming during its 2023 season. This year, we will continue to offer our programming in a variety of delivery methods and to have a no fee ticket option for all virtual, and most in-person, events. A grant from the Victoria Foundation will allow us to remain a dynamic event, accessible to all members of our community. |
| VICTORIA HOSPICE SOCIETY | Victoria Hospice Bereavement Services – a vital community resource | 2023 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | General Population | Grief is a natural response to significant loss. But unsupported, it can devastate health and wellness. The need for skilled, accessible, and destigmatized bereavement support in our community increases every year. The 2023 Vital Grant will ensure accessible bereavement counselling and group support is available to increasing numbers of underserved community members who urgently need the specialized services Victoria Hospice provides. |
| Victoria Humane Society | VHS Foster/Adoption Coordinator position | 2023 | Grantee | Safety | General Population | This grant will assist the Victoria Humane Society (VHS) in hiring a full-time centralized Foster/Adoption Coordinator for our ongoing Rescue to Adoption program through which we rescue, shelter, heal and find permanent loving homes for over 1,300 injured, abandoned and unwanted dogs and cats for the Greater Victoria/Southern Vancouver Island region each year. |
| Victoria Literacy Connection Society | Addressing Literacy Covid Lag on South Vancouver Island | 2023 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Learning | Children | The literacy community predicted and has now observed a “reading covid-lag” due to online learning, mark-wearing and lack of inter-personal 1:1 instruction. VLC wishes to address mainly elementary school level learners to improve their reading levels with intensive reading instruction. |
| VICTORIA NATIVE FRIENDSHIP CENTRE | Gimme Shelter | 2023 | Grantee | Housing | Indigenous People | Gimme Shelter provides culturally-based ready-to-rent training for youth coming out of care and urban Indigenous citizens who are searching for permanent affordable housing. This vital grant is to implement and operate this innovative training in order to reduce urban Indigenous homelessness. |
| Victoria Rainbow Kitchen Society | In-House Meals & Food Sharing Program | 2023 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Standard of Living | Persons with Disabilities | Supporting the C.R.D’s only ‘Community Kitchen’ (able to welcome everyone, including children, youth, young and single parent families) in our essential work providing food security to over 5,500 individuals and families each year, in the form of over 200,000 meals. |
| Victoria Restorative Justice Society | Staffing to Support Core Operations and Casework | 2023 | Grantee | Standard of Living | General Population | Restorative Justice Victoria provides restorative justice and transformation justice services in the greater Victoria area for community-based and criminal legal system referrals. In recent years, we have experienced an increase in community referrals and serious cases, and we are struggling to meet the demand. This grant will allow us to hire a part-time staff member to assist with case management. |
| VICTORIA SINGLE PARENT RESOURCE CENTRE SOCIETY | Parent Day Event | 2023 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Health & Wellness | Women | Parent Day Event – An opportunity for lone families to celebrate their families |
| VICTORIA TARGET THEATRE SOCIETY | Live Theatre on Seniors Issues: Regaining and Expanding Audiences Post-Covid | 2023 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | Seniors | Target Theatre is a company of seniors that performs plays about seniors, for seniors. In the past, we primarily served seniors living in residences. COVID restrictions severely curtailed all social activities of these seniors, and prevented us from performing for them. Recovery has been slow. This funding request is to help us regain our audiences, expand our service to new audiences, and expand our programming to reach out to the seniors community in new ways. |
| VICTORIA WOMEN’S TRANSITION HOUSE SOCIETY | Spousal Assault Victim Support Project | 2023 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Safety | Women | We are making this request to provide support to survivors of assault, threats or criminal harassment by an intimate partner or ex-partner through the Spousal Assault Victim Support Program. Women are provided with short-term counselling, safety planning, emotional support, court accompaniment and referrals to community agencies, as their cases proceed through the criminal justice system. This program is located in Victoria and West Shore courthouse locations. |
| VIDEA A BC-BASED INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT EDUCATION ASSOCIATION | Nurturing Wellness | 2023 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Youth | Staff and community wellness project rooted in holistic Indigenous knowledge to support staff as they do important community work. As many of our staff are grassroots workers, we will implement a wellness retreat for them so they can continue to do the good work they do without burning out. The wellness retreat will have two directives, wellness for staff and planning a community wellness retreat that will happen later in the year. |
| WATERSHED WATCH SALMON SOCIETY | Improving salmon fishery sustainability in the Capital Region’s coastal waters | 2023 | Grantee | Environmental Sustainability | Indigenous People | This grant will support our efforts to reduce the impact of local fisheries on endangered salmon populations in the coastal waters of the Capital Region. This work will be done in collaboration with conservation organizations, First Nations, fishery stakeholders, and others, and will benefit the recovery of endangered Southern Resident Killer Whales and other local wildlife that depend on salmon. |
| WEAR 2 START SOCIETY | Wear2Start Staffing Support | 2023 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | Women | Wear2Start reduces barriers by providing a wardrobe and services to build self-confidence and empower self-identified women to take their next steps. Funding will allow W2S to continue to employ two part-time staff, a Program Manager and a Volunteer Program/Administrative Coordinator who are integral to the overall delivery of services, the wellbeing of clients and volunteers, and the future sustainability of the organization. |
| West Coast Reach Association | Diversity and Inclusion Performing Arts Programs and Shows | 2023 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | Persons with Disabilities | Support for an important portion of four community performing-arts-for-social-good programs and two major community shows in Victoria empowering those from marginalized groups, and commemorating Human Solidarity Day, the International Day of Persons With Disabilities, and Earth Day. |
| WITS Programs Foundation | Vital Support for COVID recovery | 2023 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Safety | Children | This grant is intended to help us, WITS Programs Foundation to recover from losses we suffered during the COVID-19 pandemic. Your funding will support core staff, help us to upgrade our online systems (website, e-commerce, remote training and Contact Relationship Management-CRM), and advance our proposed inclusion and indigenous programming. |
| YMCA-YWCA OF VANCOUVER ISLAND | Camp Thunderbird Summer Camp 2023 | 2023 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Getting Started in our Community | Youth | The Y is determined to keep fees affordable to ensure equal access for all campers while managing unprecedented cost increases to food, transportation and labor during the current sustained period of rapid inflation. We seek additional sources of funding to help offer an expanded slate of summer programs scheduled for 2023, positively impacting hundreds of children from the Greater Victoria area and throughout Vancouver Island. |
| 1000X5 Children’s Book Recycling Project Society | 1000X5 Children’s Book Recycling Project Society (Victoria 1000×5) | 2022 | Grantee | Learning | Children (aged 0-13) | |
| 9 – 10 CLUB SERVING SOUP TO THE HUNGRY | Operational Support for At Risk Food Insecure Community Residents | 2022 | Grantee | Standard of Living | Persons with Disabilities (visible or hidden) | |
| A C P D -ACTION COMMITTEE OF PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES SOCIETY | Core funding for building capacity and ensuring ACPD’s sustainability | 2022 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Persons with Disabilities (visible or hidden) | |
| Aboriginal Coalition To End Homelessness Society | Strengthening Support for the Indigenous Street Family through Peer Programming | 2022 | Grantee | Getting Started in Our Community | Indigenous People (First Nations, Metis, Inuit) | |
| Artemis Place Society | Artemisia Integrated Garden Wellness Program | 2022 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Youth (aged 14-29) | |
| Artsea Community Arts Council Society | Community Connectedness and Positive Mental Health Through Arts and Culture | 2022 | Grantee | Arts & Culture | Multiple | |
| ATIRA WOMEN’S RESOURCE SOCIETY | Aerie Playground Project | 2022 | Grantee | Standard of Living | Children (aged 0-13) | |
| AVI Health & Community Services Society | Positive Wellness Nutrition Program | 2022 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Health & Wellness | Persons with Disabilities (visible or hidden) | |
| BAYANIHAN CULTURAL AND HOUSING SOCIETY | Staff and equipment needs for Bayanihan Community Centre’s Re-opening | 2022 | Grantee | Arts & Culture | Newcomers (recent immigrants and refugees) | |
| BC WHEELCHAIR SPORTS ASSOCIATION | Bridging the Gap – Capital Region | 2022 | Grantee | Sports & Recreation | Persons with Disabilities (visible or hidden) | |
| BCEdAccess Society | Moms of Racialized Children Monthly Support Group | 2022 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Black and Racialized People | |
| BIG BROTHERS AND BIG SISTERS OF VICTORIA CAPITAL REGION | Be You – Healthy Bodies Healthy Minds | 2022 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Belonging & Engagement | Children (aged 0-13) | |
| BIRTHING FAMILIES FOUNDATION | Community Doula Support: A Wrap-around referral based program | 2022 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Women | |
| BIRTHING FAMILIES FOUNDATION | Optimal Interdisciplinary Care Strategies | 2022 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Women | |
| Blue Bridge Theatre Society | Accessible Washroom Upgrade – backstage area, The Roxy Theatre | 2022 | Grantee | Arts & Culture | Persons with Disabilities (visible or hidden) | |
| BRIDGES FOR WOMEN SOCIETY | Advocacy & Client Support | 2022 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Standard of Living | Women | |
| British Columbia Black History Awareness Society | Colourful Business 2022 (CB 2022) | 2022 | Grantee | Economy | Black and Racialized People | |
| BURNSIDE GORGE COMMUNITY ASSOCIATION | Youth Self Sufficiency | 2022 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | Youth (aged 14-29) | |
| CAMOSUN COLLEGE FOUNDATION | Creating Equality through Access and Opportunity for South Island Youth | 2022 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Learning | Youth (aged 14-29) | |
| CANADIAN COUNCIL OF PROVINCIAL AND TERRITORIAL SPORT FEDERATIONS INC. | Ultimate Spirit | 2022 | Grantee | Sports & Recreation | Indigenous People (First Nations, Metis, Inuit) | |
| Canadian Light Music Society | Palm Court 36th. Season | 2022 | Grantee | Arts & Culture | Multiple | |
| Cancer Driveline Society | Cancer Driveline Technology Upgrade | 2022 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Persons with Disabilities (visible or hidden) | |
| CAPRICCIO VOCAL ENSEMBLE SOCIETY | Remembrance Day Concert in support of Ukraine | 2022 | Grantee | Arts & Culture | Newcomers (recent immigrants and refugees) | |
| CENTENNIAL UNITED CHURCH | Conservation of historic interior wall | 2022 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Multiple | |
| CENTRE FOR EARTH AND SPIRIT SOCIETY | Finding Belonging: Strengthening Program Capacity/Reach for Seniors & Equity-Deserving Groups | 2022 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | Multiple | |
| Cetus Research & Conservation Society | Protecting Endangered Southern Resident Killer Whales | 2022 | Grantee | Environmental Sustainability | Women | |
| CHILD ABUSE PREVENTION AND COUNSELLING SOCIETY OF GREATER VICTORIA | Kid’s Hearts and Minds Matter | 2022 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Children (aged 0-13) | |
| Citadel Therapy Canine Society | PTSD medical service dog support | 2022 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Persons with Disabilities (visible or hidden) | |
| COLUMBIA INSTITUTE | Recovery and Resilience for Precarious Workers | 2022 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Black and Racialized People | |
| Community First Foundation | Backpack Buddies Victoria | 2022 | Grantee | Standard of Living | Children (aged 0-13) | |
| COMMUNITY SOCIAL PLANNING COUNCIL OF GREATER VICTORIA | ID Bank Pilot | 2022 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | Multiple | |
| Construction Foundation Of BC (2012) Society | The SHIFT | 2022 | Grantee | Standard of Living | Multiple | |
| CORNERSTONE YOUTH SOCIETY | Drop-in Program Expansion | 2022 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Youth (aged 14-29) | |
| CRISIS INTERVENTION AND PUBLIC INFORMATION SOCIETY OF GREATER VICTORIA | Connecting with Youth One Chat at a Time | 2022 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Youth (aged 14-29) | |
| DANCE VICTORIA SOCIETY | Giving Space and Support to Racialized Dance Artists | 2022 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Arts & Culture | Multiple | |
| Downtown Blanshard Advisory Committee | Housing Outreach | 2022 | Grantee | Housing | Multiple | |
| Esquimalt First Nation | Stronger together boys and Girls groups | 2022 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Indigenous People (First Nations, Metis, Inuit) | |
| ESQUIMALT NEIGHBOURHOOD HOUSE SOCIETY | The Saturday Market | 2022 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Multiple | |
| F.P.S.S. FOSTER PARENT SUPPORT SERVICES SOCIETY | Moving Mentoring Forward | 2022 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Multiple | |
| Fairfield Community Association Of Victoria | Gender Generations Project | 2022 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | LGBTQ2S+ | |
| FERNWOOD NEIGHBOURHOOD RESOURCE GROUP SOCIETY | Supported, Housed, Secure | 2022 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Housing | Newcomers (recent immigrants and refugees) | |
| FRIENDS OF LIVING AND LEARNING THROUGH LOSS | Vital Streams Grant Application for Learning Through Loss | 2022 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Health & Wellness | Youth (aged 14-29) | |
| Frontier College | Community Literacy Catalyst (Expansion) | 2022 | Grantee | Learning | Indigenous People (First Nations, Metis, Inuit) | |
| GALIANO CONSERVANCY ASSOCIATION | Sustainable Food Systems & Environmental Education on Galiano 2023 | 2022 | Grantee | Environmental Sustainability | Multiple | |
| GALIANO HEALTH CARE SOCIETY | Reaching Out: A Supports Grant for Galiano Island | 2022 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Persons with Disabilities (visible or hidden) | |
| GEORGIA STRAIT ALLIANCE | Empowering communities to take action on issues they care about | 2022 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | Multiple | |
| GREATER VICTORIA CITIZENS COUNSELLING CENTRE | Adult Counselling | 2022 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Women | |
| Greater Victoria Coalition To End Homelessness Society | Peer Housing Support Community Collaboration | 2022 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | Multiple | |
| GREATER VICTORIA ELDERCARE FOUNDATION | Restoring Music Therapy to Glengarry and Aberdeen Long-term Care Homes | 2022 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Persons with Disabilities (visible or hidden) | |
| GREATER VICTORIA POLICE VICTIM SERVICES SOCIETY | Creating Cultural Safety for Police Victim Services in Greater Victoria | 2022 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | Multiple | |
| GREATER VICTORIA VOLUNTEER SOCIETY | Welcoming Board Spaces | 2022 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | Black and Racialized People | |
| Green Teams Of Canada | Mentoring and Empowering Youth to Become Environmental Community Leaders | 2022 | Grantee | Learning | Youth (aged 14-29) | |
| Growing Young Farmers Society | Fall 2022 & Spring 2023 School Garden Programs and Workshops | 2022 | Grantee | Learning | Children (aged 0-13) | |
| HABITAT ACQUISITION TRUST | Improving Technology and Equipment at HAT | 2022 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Environmental Sustainability | Multiple | |
| HABITAT ACQUISITION TRUST | A Collaborative Conservation Partnership Initiative | 2022 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Belonging & Engagement | Indigenous People (First Nations, Metis, Inuit) | |
| HABITAT FOR HUMANITY VICTORIA | CRFSN 2022 | 2022 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Multiple | |
| Harvest & Share Food Relief Society | Community Grant 2022 | 2022 | Grantee | Standard of Living | Multiple | |
| HELP FILL A DREAM FOUNDATION OF CANADA | Family Assistance | 2022 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Health & Wellness | Children (aged 0-13) | |
| HeroWork Program Society | Rebuilding HeroWork Back Better | 2022 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | Multiple | |
| HOME IS WHERE WE LIVE-LIFE CYCLES PROJECT SOCIETY | Fruitfulness at LifeCycles | 2022 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Multiple | |
| Human-Nature Counselling Society | Supporting Accessible Nature-Based Counselling Services for Community Members | 2022 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Multiple | |
| Industrial Areas Foundation Canada | Building Back Better: GVAT member support post-pandemic | 2022 | Grantee | Housing | Multiple | |
| INSPIREHEALTH SOCIETY | Supportive Cancer Care in the Capital Region District | 2022 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Persons with Disabilities (visible or hidden) | |
| Island Community Mental Health Association | Psychosocial Rehabilitation Collaboration | 2022 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Health & Wellness | Persons with Disabilities (visible or hidden) | |
| Island Community Mental Health Association | See Spring – Peer Support Curriculum Training and Capacity Building | 2022 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Health & Wellness | Persons with Disabilities (visible or hidden) | |
| ISLAND DEAF AND HARD OF HEARING CENTRE ASSOCIATION | Sound of Change Initiative | 2022 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Health & Wellness | Persons with Disabilities (visible or hidden) | |
| ISLAND KIDS CANCER ASSOCIATION | Island Kids Cancer Association’s Recovery and Sustainable Growth Project | 2022 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Children (aged 0-13) | |
| ISLAND SEXUAL HEALTH SOCIETY | Advancing Gender Equity | 2022 | Grantee | Learning | LGBTQ2S+ | |
| JAMES BAY HEALTH AND COMMUNITY SERVICES SOCIETY | Building Food & Volunteer Resources | 2022 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Multiple | |
| JEWISH COMMUNITY CENTRE OF VICTORIA | Victoria International Jewish Film Festival | 2022 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | Multiple | |
| Jewish Family Services Of Vancouver Island | The Saanich Green Market: affordable, fresh produce | 2022 | Grantee | Standard of Living | Multiple | |
| JUNIOR ACHIEVEMENT OF BRITISH COLUMBIA | Bright Futures for all Capital Regional District youth | 2022 | Grantee | Standard of Living | Youth (aged 14-29) | |
| KALEIDOSCOPE THEATRE PRODUCTIONS SOCIETY | Free Accessible Outdoor Theatre Production For Young Audiences | 2022 | Grantee | Arts & Culture | Multiple | |
| Kidsport Canada | So ALL Kids Can Play season-of-sport registration support | 2022 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Sports & Recreation | Multiple | |
| LESTER B. PEARSON COLLEGE OF THE PACIFIC AND UNITED WORLD COLLEGES (CANADA) INC. – COLLEGE DU PACIFIQUE LESTER B. PEARSON ET COLLEGES DU MONDE UNI (CANADA) INC. | Climate Action Leadership Diploma at Pearson College UWC | 2022 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Learning | Youth (aged 14-29) | |
| Living Edge Community Church | Food Recovery & Distribution through Living Edge Markets in 2022. | 2022 | Grantee | Standard of Living | Multiple | |
| Makeway Charitable Society | A Conversational Series That Redefines Community Care | 2022 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | Multiple | |
| MARITIME MUSEUM OF BRITISH COLUMBIA | Capacity Building at the Maritime Museum of BC | 2022 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Arts & Culture | Multiple | |
| MAYNE ISLAND ASSISTED LIVING SOCIETY | Mayne Island Assisted Living support and administration | 2022 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Multiple | |
| MAYNE ISLAND CONSERVANCY SOCIETY | Mayne Island Community Stewardship Program | 2022 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Environmental Sustainability | Multiple | |
| MENTAL HEALTH RECOVERY PARTNERS SOCIETY – SOUTH VANCOUVER ISLAND | Building Community and Connections | 2022 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Belonging & Engagement | Persons with Disabilities (visible or hidden) | |
| Move Adapted Fitness And Rehabilitation Society Of B.C. | Supported Therapeutic Exercise Program (STEP) | 2022 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Persons with Disabilities (visible or hidden) | |
| OAK BAY VOLUNTEER SERVICES SOCIETY | Pandemic Recovery and Resilience for Vulnerable Seniors | 2022 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Health & Wellness | Multiple | |
| OAKLANDS COMMUNITY ASSOCIATION | Oaklands Community Association’s Childcare and Community Servicing Costs | 2022 | Grantee | Standard of Living | Multiple | |
| OASIS SOCIETY FOR THE SPIRITUAL HEALTH OF VICTORIA | Oasis Long-term Planning | 2022 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Indigenous People (First Nations, Metis, Inuit) | |
| OPEN SPACE ARTS SOCIETY | Project Coordinator – Fifty Years on this Land | 2022 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Arts & Culture | Indigenous People (First Nations, Metis, Inuit) | |
| OUR PLACE SOCIETY | Enhancing Workplace Security and Training | 2022 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Safety | Multiple | |
| OUTWARD BOUND CANADA | Explore & Thrive: Indigenous Youth Program | 2022 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | Indigenous People (First Nations, Metis, Inuit) | |
| PACIFIC ANIMAL THERAPY SOCIETY | Pacific Animal Therapy Society Funding request | 2022 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Multiple | |
| PACIFIC CENTRE FAMILY SERVICES ASSOCIATION | Intake and Referral Services | 2022 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Health & Wellness | Persons with Disabilities (visible or hidden) | |
| Pacific Institute For Sport Excellence Society | Belonging at PISE | 2022 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Belonging & Engagement | Multiple | |
| PACIFICA HOUSING ADVISORY ASSOCIATION | Embedding Reconciliation & Decolonization Practices in Pacifica Housing Operations | 2022 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Housing | Indigenous People (First Nations, Metis, Inuit) | |
| PARKINSON WELLNESS PROJECTS | Parkinson Wellness Projects Fitness, Counselling, Support and Education Programs | 2022 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Persons with Disabilities (visible or hidden) | |
| PEERS VICTORIA RESOURCES SOCIETY | Community Building through Cultural and Social Gathering | 2022 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Women | |
| PENDER ISLAND CHILD CARE SOCIETY | Family Wellness and Belonging | 2022 | Grantee | Getting Started in Our Community | Multiple | |
| PENINSULA STREAMS SOCIETY | Engaging Young Stewards’ Environmental Education Program | 2022 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Environmental Sustainability | Children (aged 0-13) | |
| Pepaken Hautw Food Systems Education Foundation | PEPAKEN TE TENEW: Restoration & Resilience in the WSANEC Homelands | 2022 | Grantee | Environmental Sustainability | Indigenous People (First Nations, Metis, Inuit) | |
| POWER TO BE ADVENTURE THERAPY SOCIETY | Power To Be Collaboration and Site Use Plan | 2022 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Multiple | |
| PTARMIGAN ARTS SOCIETY | Community Art for Engagement and Resilience | 2022 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | Multiple | |
| PUENTE THEATRE SOCIETY | EDIA Mentorship programs | 2022 | Grantee | Arts & Culture | Multiple | |
| RAINCOAST CONSERVATION FOUNDATION | Building Coastal Conservation Capacity | 2022 | Grantee | Environmental Sustainability | Black and Racialized People | |
| Ready To Rent BC Association | Building Capacity for Eviction Prevention | 2022 | Grantee | Housing | Multiple | |
| SAANICH COMMUNITY LEGACY FOUNDATION | Fateh Care Mobile Food Bank | 2022 | Grantee | Standard of Living | Newcomers (recent immigrants and refugees) | |
| SAANICH COMMUNITY LEGACY FOUNDATION | Grandmother Moon Domestic Violence Workshops & Counselling | 2022 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Indigenous People (First Nations, Metis, Inuit) | |
| SALT SPRING AND SOUTHERN GULF ISLANDS COMMUNITY SERVICES SOCIETY | Housing First Mental Health Outreach | 2022 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Persons with Disabilities (visible or hidden) | |
| SALT SPRING ARTS COUNCIL | Community Arts Capacity Building | 2022 | Grantee | Arts & Culture | Multiple | |
| Salt Spring Baroque Music Society | Concert and workshop funding for Salt Spring Baroque Music Society | 2022 | Grantee | Arts & Culture | Multiple | |
| Salt Spring Community Health Society | Mental Health First Aid Instructor Training | 2022 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Persons with Disabilities (visible or hidden) | |
| Salt Spring Island Farmland Trust Society | The Root Food Hub Commercial Kitchen | 2022 | Grantee | Standard of Living | Multiple | |
| Salt Spring Literacy Society | Salt Spring Literacy Centre Upgrade Project | 2022 | Grantee | Learning | Multiple | |
| Saturna Island Marine Research And Education Society | Salary Support for Short Term Social Media and Administrative Assistance | 2022 | Grantee | Environmental Sustainability | Multiple | |
| SEACHANGE MARINE CONSERVATION SOCIETY | Visualizing SeaChange | 2022 | Grantee | Environmental Sustainability | Multiple | |
| SENIORS SERVING SENIORS ASSOCIATION OF BRITISH COLUMBIA | Volunteer Education Coordinator Funding | 2022 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Multiple | |
| Shelbourne Community Kitchen Society | The Shelbourne Community Kitchen – Setting the Table | 2022 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Standard of Living | Multiple | |
| SIERRA CLUB OF BRITISH COLUMBIA FOUNDATION | Environmental Education in the CRD – 2022 | 2022 | Grantee | Environmental Sustainability | Multiple | |
| SILVER THREADS SERVICE | Food Security for Seniors | 2022 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Multiple | |
| Singyourjoy Young Adult Chorus Society | SingYourJoy Re-boot: Pandemic recovery support | 2022 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | Youth (aged 14-29) | |
| SOAP FOR HOPE CANADA SOCIETY | Growing Capacity to strengthen our organization | 2022 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Multiple | |
| SOOKE FAMILY RESOURCE SOCIETY | Advancing Equity, Diversity and Inclusion in Greater Victoria | 2022 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | Multiple | |
| SOOKE FAMILY RESOURCE SOCIETY | Pre-Postnatal Education/Outreach and Youth Navigator/Outreach Staff | 2022 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Multiple | |
| SOOKE HARBOUR PLAYERS SOCIETY | Sooke Harbour Players Society – Community Focus grant | 2022 | Grantee | Arts & Culture | Multiple | |
| Sooke Shelter Society | Mental Health and Addictions Counsellor | 2022 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Persons with Disabilities (visible or hidden) | |
| Stigma-Free Society | Student Mental Health Toolkit & Virtual Stigma Free Presentations (Victoria) | 2022 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Youth (aged 14-29) | |
| Story Studio Writing Society | Stronger Together: Creating Literacy Capacity for Southern Vancouver Island | 2022 | Grantee | Learning | Multiple | |
| Story Studio Writing Society | Words to Grow By: Literacy Intervention for Under-resourced Families | 2022 | Grantee | Learning | Children (aged 0-13) | |
| STQEEYE’ LEARNING SOCIETY | Hwial’asmut tu tumuhw (Taking Care of the Earth) | 2022 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | Indigenous People (First Nations, Metis, Inuit) | |
| Suddenly Dance Theatre Society | Fountain of Youth 2022 | 2022 | Grantee | Getting Started in Our Community | Youth (aged 14-29) | |
| SURROUNDED BY CEDAR CHILD AND FAMILY SERVICES SOCIETY | Technology Enhancements at SCCFS | 2022 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Health & Wellness | Indigenous People (First Nations, Metis, Inuit) | |
| TAKE A HIKE, YOUTH AT RISK FOUNDATION | Take a Hike South Island | 2022 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Youth (aged 14-29) | |
| The Bateman Foundation | Recovery though the Magic of Art and Nature | 2022 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Arts & Culture | Children (aged 0-13) | |
| THE BELFRY THEATRE SOCIETY | Arts Leadership Training Program 2022/23 (Year Two) | 2022 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Arts & Culture | Multiple | |
| THE BELFRY THEATRE SOCIETY | Culture Den Society’s Bury the Hatchet Community Theatre Production | 2022 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Arts & Culture | Indigenous People (First Nations, Metis, Inuit) | |
| The Board Of Education Of School District No. 63 (Saanich) | PENINSULA “1000 X 5” Children’s Book Recycling Project | 2022 | Grantee | Learning | Children (aged 0-13) | |
| THE BRITISH COLUMBIA LIONS SOCIETY FOR CHILDREN WITH DISABILITIES | Camp Shawnigan Summer Camp for Persons with Diverse Abilities | 2022 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | Persons with Disabilities (visible or hidden) | |
| THE CAPITAL REGION PROSTATE CENTRE | Capacity Building Grant for Island Prostate Centre | 2022 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Health & Wellness | Multiple | |
| THE CIRCLE SALT SPRING EDUCATION SOCIETY | The Empathy Project | 2022 | Grantee | Learning | Children (aged 0-13) | |
| The Farmlands Trust (Greater Victoria) Society | Poverty Relief via the FLT Society’s”Field to Plate” Initiative | 2022 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Persons with Disabilities (visible or hidden) | |
| THE GALIANO CLUB | Ensuring Food Security into the Future | 2022 | Grantee | Standard of Living | Multiple | |
| THE GREATER VICTORIA PERFORMING ARTS FESTIVAL ASSOCIATION | Community Grants Program, Vital Stream | 2022 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Arts & Culture | Multiple | |
| THE JOHN HOWARD SOCIETY OF VICTORIA | KidStart | 2022 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Multiple | |
| THE KHALSA DIWAN SOCIETY OF VICTORIA | Seniors Social Activity Group | 2022 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Multiple | |
| THE LINDEN SINGERS OF VICTORIA SOCIETY | Community Through Music | 2022 | Grantee | Arts & Culture | Multiple | |
| THE MUSTARD SEED STREET CHURCH | Hospitality Centre – Street Outreach Program | 2022 | Grantee | Standard of Living | Multiple | |
| THE SALVATION ARMY VICTORIA ADDICTIONS AND REHABILITATION CENTRE | Supporting the Unhoused of Victoria | 2022 | Grantee | Housing | Persons with Disabilities (visible or hidden) | |
| THE STORY THEATRE PRODUCTIONS SOCIETY | Operating Support for 2022-23 Season (Theatre for Young Audiences) | 2022 | Grantee | Arts & Culture | Children (aged 0-13) | |
| The Victoria Youth Clinic Society | Fundraising Capacity Building | 2022 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Youth (aged 14-29) | |
| THE VICTORIA YOUTH EMPOWERMENT SOCIETY | Online Case Management System for The Victoria Youth Empowerment Society | 2022 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Youth (aged 14-29) | |
| THEATRE SKAM ASSOCIATION | Operations 2022-23 | 2022 | Grantee | Arts & Culture | Multiple | |
| THRESHOLD HOUSING SOCIETY | Brighter Futures through Healing Supports and Housing Stabilization | 2022 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Housing | Youth (aged 14-29) | |
| TOGETHER AGAINST POVERTY SOCIETY (TAPS) | Tenant Legal Advocacy and Empowerment Project | 2022 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Housing | Multiple | |
| Transition Salt Spring Society | Collective Impact for Real Climate Action | 2022 | Grantee | Environmental Sustainability | Multiple | |
| T’Sou-ke First Nation | WUI CIST CEN TOL | 2022 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Indigenous People (First Nations, Metis, Inuit) | |
| Umbrella Society For Addictions And Mental Health | Funding for Peer Outreach Worker | 2022 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Health & Wellness | Multiple | |
| UNIVERSITY OF VICTORIA | Equitable Access for a Strong Community: The Law Centre | 2022 | Grantee | Standard of Living | Multiple | |
| Vancouver Island Counselling Centre For Immigrants And Refugees Association | Mental Health Counselling for Immigrants and Refugees | 2022 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Newcomers (recent immigrants and refugees) | |
| VANCOUVER ISLAND KIDS KLUB CENTRE SOCIETY | Kids Klub Brown Bag Lunch Program | 2022 | Grantee | Standard of Living | Children (aged 0-13) | |
| VANCOUVER ISLAND MEN’S THERAPY CENTRE SOCIETY | No One Left Behind | 2022 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Multiple | |
| Victoria Arion Male Choir Society | Islands Around the World Concerts | 2022 | Grantee | Arts & Culture | Multiple | |
| Victoria Arts Council | SUPPLY Victoria Creative Reuse Centre | 2022 | Grantee | Standard of Living | Multiple | |
| Victoria Baroque Music Society | Baroque concerts and outreach | 2022 | Grantee | Arts & Culture | Multiple | |
| VICTORIA BRAIN INJURY SOCIETY | Case Management | 2022 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Health & Wellness | Persons with Disabilities (visible or hidden) | |
| VICTORIA COALITION FOR SURVIVORS OF TORTURE | Interconnectedness of torture survivors and their families with resources | 2022 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Newcomers (recent immigrants and refugees) | |
| Victoria Community Food Hub Society | Community Food Support | 2022 | Grantee | Standard of Living | Multiple | |
| Victoria Community Food Hub Society | Equity Partnership Platform Development Project | 2022 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | Multiple | |
| Victoria Community Food Hub Society | Good Food Collaboration Grant | 2022 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Multiple | |
| Victoria Community Food Hub Society | Supporting core Program and Operations Management | 2022 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Black and Racialized People | |
| VICTORIA COMPOST & CONSERVATION EDUCATION SOCIETY | Healing City Soils: The Ground Beneath Our Feet | 2022 | Grantee | Environmental Sustainability | Multiple | |
| VICTORIA CONSERVATORY OF MUSIC | Getting Started – Early Childhood Music Education Outreach | 2022 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Getting Started in Our Community | Children (aged 0-13) | |
| VICTORIA DISABILITY RESOURCE CENTRE | Live Experiences Around Disability (LEAD) | 2022 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | Persons with Disabilities (visible or hidden) | |
| Victoria Festival Of Authors Society | Victoria Festival of Authors 2022 | 2022 | Grantee | Arts & Culture | Multiple | |
| VICTORIA HOSPICE SOCIETY | Meeting the overwhelming demand for bereavement services with specialized support | 2022 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Health & Wellness | Multiple | |
| VICTORIA HOSPITALS FOUNDATION | Health Equity Initiative | 2022 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Multiple | |
| VICTORIA IMMIGRANT AND REFUGEE CENTRE SOCIETY | VIRCS Enable Program Sustainability | 2022 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Belonging & Engagement | Newcomers (recent immigrants and refugees) | |
| VICTORIA INTEGRATION SOCIETY | OneAbility Community Collaboration | 2022 | Grantee | Sports & Recreation | Persons with Disabilities (visible or hidden) | |
| Victoria Literacy Connection Society | Family literacy for the South Island | 2022 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Learning | Newcomers (recent immigrants and refugees) | |
| VICTORIA NATIVE FRIENDSHIP CENTRE | 3 Mothers Medicine Camps – Trauma Reduction Through Community Wellness | 2022 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | LGBTQ2S+ | |
| VICTORIA NATIVE FRIENDSHIP CENTRE | Urban Indigenous Youth Mental Health | 2022 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Belonging & Engagement | Indigenous People (First Nations, Metis, Inuit) | |
| VICTORIA PHILHARMONIC CHOIR SOCIETY | Choral Concert of Edward Elgar’s “The Dream of Gerontius” | 2022 | Grantee | Arts & Culture | Multiple | |
| Victoria Rainbow Kitchen Society | In-House Hot Meals & Food Sharing Programs | 2022 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Standard of Living | Multiple | |
| Victoria Restorative Justice Society | Community Justice Volunteer Program | 2022 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | Multiple | |
| Victoria Sexual Assault Centre Society | Black Youth Empowerment Project (BYE) | 2022 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Safety | Black and Racialized People | |
| VICTORIA SOCIETY FOR CHILDREN WITH AUTISM | 2022-2023 Operations and Program Funding | 2022 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Persons with Disabilities (visible or hidden) | |
| VICTORIA SYMPHONY SOCIETY | Splash Around Town | 2022 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Arts & Culture | Multiple | |
| VICTORIA THERAPEUTIC RIDING ASSOCIATION | Victoria Therapeutic Riding Operations Funding Request | 2022 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Health & Wellness | Persons with Disabilities (visible or hidden) | |
| VICTORIA WOMEN’S TRANSITION HOUSE SOCIETY | Stopping the Violence and Substance Abuse Counselling | 2022 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Health & Wellness | Women | |
| WEAR 2 START SOCIETY | Wear2Start Staffing Support | 2022 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Women | |
| WEST COAST CHILDREN’S CHORAL SOCIETY | Choral Education Programs for Children and Youth | 2022 | Grantee | Arts & Culture | Multiple | |
| West Coast Reach Association | We Are One! Victoria | 2022 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | Persons with Disabilities (visible or hidden) | |
| WITS Programs Foundation | WITS Programs: WITS, Canada Kindness Leaders, Pink Shirt Day | 2022 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Safety | Multiple | |
| YMCA-YWCA OF VANCOUVER ISLAND | Camp Thunderbird – Rebuild and Renew | 2022 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Health & Wellness | Multiple | |
| YOUNG ENTREPRENEURS OF CANADA ASSOCIATION | Engaging the Capital Region Students with PowerPlay Young Entrepreneurs | 2022 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Children (aged 0-13) | |
| 1UP Victoria Single Parent Resource Centre Society | Mental Health Supports for Families | 2021 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Health & Wellness | Adults | |
| Aboriginal Coalition to End Homelessness Society | Building the Operational Capacity of the Aboriginal Coalition | 2021 | Grantee | Housing | Indigenous People (First Nations, Metis, Inuit) | |
| Action Committee of People with Disabilities Society | Provide virtual and technological connections for 30-50 disabled members | 2021 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | Persons with Disabilities | |
| Alzheimer Society of BC | Pandemic-adapted supports for Victoria residents with dementia and their caregivers | 2021 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Health & Wellness | Seniors and Elders (in and not in care) | |
| AVI Health and Community Services Society | Positive Wellness Outreach Program | 2021 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Health & Wellness | Persons with Disabilities | |
| Ballet Victoria Society | Ballet Victoria Digital Dissemination – Community Recovery Program | 2021 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Arts & Culture | Seniors and Elders (in and not in care) | |
| BAYANIHAN CULTURAL AND HOUSING SOCIETY | Staff and equipment needs for Bayanihan Community Centre’s Covid19 recovery | 2021 | Grantee | Arts & Culture | Newcomers, Immigrants and Refugees | |
| BC Aboriginal Network on Disability Society | Welcome to the New Normal – BCANDS Technology Upgrade | 2021 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Persons with Disabilities | |
| BC Cancer Foundation | PSMA-PET Equipment | 2021 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Seniors and Elders (in and not in care) | |
| Bridges for Women Society | Indigenous Bridging Program | 2021 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Economy | Gender (women, girls, LGBTQIA2S+) | |
| British Columbia Black History Awareness Society | Youth Engagement for Black Anti-Racism Programs | 2021 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | People who Identify as Racialized | |
| British Columbia Lions Society for Children with Disabilities | Summer Programming for Persons with Diverse Abilities in the CRD | 2021 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | Persons with Disabilities | |
| Broadmead Care Society | Mental Health and Emotional Wellbeing Enhancement | 2021 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Health & Wellness | Persons with Disabilities | |
| Burnside Gorge Community Association | Youth Self Sufficiency | 2021 | Grantee | Getting Started in Community | Children and Youth (age 0-29) | |
| Camosun College Foundation | South Island Partnership (SIP) – Camosun College | 2021 | Grantee | Learning | Children and Youth (age 0-29) | |
| Canadian Disability Foundation | Growing Connections, Capacity and Collaboration | 2021 | Grantee | Sport & Recreation | Persons with Disabilities | |
| Canadian Paraplegic Association BC | Peer Support and Information for SCI in Victoria | 2021 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Persons with Disabilities | |
| Canadian Red Cross Society | HELP Wheelchairs for Kids in Casts: Addressing Shortages Across Victoria | 2021 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Children and Youth (age 0-29) | |
| Capital Region Prostate Centre | Expansion of Vancouver Island Prostate Health Nurse Navigator Role | 2021 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Health & Wellness | Seniors and Elders (in and not in care) | |
| Centennial United Church | Centennial Heritage Building Conservation | 2021 | Grantee | Arts & Culture | Seniors and Elders (in and not in care) | |
| Child Abuse Prevention and Counselling Society of Greater Victoria | Kids Hearts and Minds Matter | 2021 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Children and Youth (age 0-29) | |
| Citadel Therapy Canine Society | Citadel Canine PTSD service dog training support | 2021 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | People living with Mental Illness | |
| COLUMBIA INSTITUTE (The Workers Solidarity Network’s Charitable Trustee) | WSN – Pandemic Resources for Vulnerable Workers | 2021 | Grantee | Economy | People with Low Income or Living in Poverty | |
| Community First Foundation | Backpack Buddies Victoria | 2021 | Grantee | Standard of Living | Children and Youth (age 0-29) | |
| Connections Place Society | Connections Place Society – Greater Victoria Area Mental Health Support | 2021 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Health & Wellness | People living with Mental Illness | |
| Crisis Intervention and Public Information Society of Greater Vic | Increasing Youthspace.ca Staff Support | 2021 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Children and Youth (age 0-29) | |
| Dance Victoria Society | Season of Renewal | 2021 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Arts & Culture | General Public | |
| Esquimalt Neighbourhood House Society | The Saturday Market | 2021 | Grantee | Standard of Living | People with Low Income or Living in Poverty | |
| Fernwood Neighbourhood Resource Group Society | Reaching and Supporting Families | 2021 | Grantee | Getting Started in Community | Gender (women, girls, LGBTQIA2S+) | |
| Friends of Living and Learning Through Loss Society | Grief Support Counselling for Bereaved Youth | 2021 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Health & Wellness | Children and Youth (age 0-29) | |
| Friends of the Dominion Astrophysical Observatory Society | The Stars Belong to Everyone | 2021 | Grantee | Learning | Children and Youth (age 0-29) | |
| Frontier College | Community Literacy Catalyst Project — Vancouver Island | 2021 | Grantee | Learning | Indigenous People (First Nations, Meitis, Inuit) | |
| Galiano Club | Overcoming Pandemic Repercussions in a Small Community | 2021 | Grantee | Standard of Living | Seniors and Elders (in and not in care) | |
| Galiano Conservancy Association | Nurturing Nature-based Learning & Sustainable Food Systems on Galiano Island | 2021 | Grantee | Environment | Children and Youth (age 0-29) | |
| Georgia Strait Alliance | Centering vulnerable communities in seeking environmental sustainability – intersectional environmentalism | 2021 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | Indigenous People (First Nations, Meitis, Inuit) | |
| Greater Victoria Coalition to End Homelessness Society | Community Laundry Program | 2021 | Grantee | Standard of Living | People Experiencing Homelessness | |
| Greater Victoria DanceWorks Association | Community Recovery Grant | 2021 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Arts & Culture | Children and Youth (age 0-29) | |
| Greater Victoria Performing Arts Festival Association | The Greater Victoria Performing Arts Festival | 2021 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Arts & Culture | Children and Youth (age 0-29) | |
| Greater Victoria Volunteer Society | Back to Engagement: Volunteering Post COVID | 2021 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | People living with Mental Illness | |
| Green Teams of Canada | Building community, mental wellbeing and social connection through environmental action | 2021 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | Children and Youth (age 0-29) | |
| GULF ISLANDS FAMILIES TOGETHER SOCIETY | Art Therapy for Persons With Disability. | 2021 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Persons with Disabilites | |
| Habitat Acquisition Trust | Supporting Staff Transitions and Sustainability | 2021 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Environment | Gender (women, girls, LGBTQIA2S+) | |
| Help Fill a Dream Foundation of Canada | Family Assistance | 2021 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Health & Wellness | Children and Youth (age 0-29) | |
| HeroWork Program Society | Upgrade to Project Delivery and Safety Assets | 2021 | Grantee | Safety | Indigenous People (First Nations, Meitis, Inuit) | |
| Home is Where We Live LifeCycles Project Society | Collaborating for a Food Secure Region | 2021 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | People with Low Income or Living in Poverty | |
| Home is Where We Live LifeCycles Project Society | Building sustainability at LifeCycles | 2021 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | People with Low Income or Living in Poverty | |
| Indigenous Perspectives Society | Business & Communications Management Systems Development | 2021 | Grantee | Learning | Indigenous People (First Nations, Meitis, Inuit) | |
| InspireHealth Society | Supportive Cancer Care through COVID-19 | 2021 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | General Public | |
| Intrepid Theatre Company Society | Residencies: Stewarding independent arts recovery at Intrepid and Metro Studios | 2021 | Grantee | Arts & Culture | People who Identify as Racialized | |
| Island Community Mental Health Association | Psychosocial Rehabilitation Rehabilitation Collaborative (PSRC) | 2021 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Health & Wellness | People living with Mental Illness | |
| Island Deaf and Hard of Hearing Centre Association | Hearing Health – Recovery & Rebuilding | 2021 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Health & Wellness | Persons with Disabilites | |
| Island Kids Cancer Association | The People and Positions Creating Impact | 2021 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Children and Youth (age 0-29) | |
| Island Sexual Health Society | Improving Youth Accessibility to sexual health services during COVID | 2021 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Children and Youth (age 0-29) | |
| Island String Players Society | Victoria Chamber Orchestra Streams in 2021-2023 | 2021 | Grantee | Arts & Culture | Children and Youth (age 0-29) | |
| James Bay New Horizons Society | Strength Within Covid Recovery Arts Program | 2021 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | Seniors and Elders (in and not in care) | |
| Jewish Community Centre of Victoria | Victoria International Jewish Film Festival | 2021 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | People who Identify as Racialized | |
| Kaleidoscope Theatre Production Society | Free Accessible Outdoor Theatre Production For Young Audiences | 2021 | Grantee | Arts & Culture | Children and Youth (age 0-29) | |
| KidSport Canada BC | Support to Local Sport Organizations So ALL Kids Can Play | 2021 | Grantee | Sport & Recreation | Children and Youth (age 0-29) | |
| Langham Court Theatre Society | COVID RECOVERY | 2021 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Arts & Culture | Seniors and Elders (in and not in care) | |
| Leadership Victoria Society | Inclusive Community Leadership Development (ICLD) | 2021 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Belonging & Engagement | People who Identify as Racialized | |
| Lester B Pearson College of the Pacific | Climate Action Leadership Diploma at Pearson College UWC | 2021 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Environment | Children and Youth (age 0-29) | |
| Linden Singers of Victoria | Building Community Through Music | 2021 | Grantee | Arts & Culture | Gender (women, girls, LGBTQIA2S+) | |
| Living Edge Community Church | Living Edge Neighbourhood Markets during COVID 2021 | 2021 | Grantee | Standard of Living | People with Low Income or Living in Poverty | |
| Makeway Charitable Society | Integrating Supportive Housing Into Communities With Storytelling | 2021 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | People Experiencing Homelessness | |
| Marie Esther Society | Promoting belonging and engagement of LTC residents through safe transfers. | 2021 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Belonging & Engagement | Seniors and Elders (in and not in care) | |
| Maritime Museum of British Columbia Society | 2021-2022 Programs | 2021 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Arts & Culture | Children and Youth (age 0-29) | |
| Mayne Island Conservancy Society | Mayne Island Community Stewardship Program | 2021 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Environment | General Public | |
| Mental Health Recovery Partners Society – South Vancouver Island | Building a Peer Support Workforce | 2021 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Health & Wellness | People living with Mental Illness | |
| Move Adapted Fitness and Rehabilitation Society of BC | Supported Therapeutic Exercise Program (STEP) | 2021 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Persons with Disabilites | |
| New Marine Centre Society | Shaw Centre for the Salish Sea COVID Recovery | 2021 | Grantee | Learning | General Public | |
| Oak Bay Volunteer Services Society | COVID-19 Health Emergency Response | 2021 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Health & Wellness | Seniors and Elders (in and not in care) | |
| Oaklands Community Association | Fulfilling OCA Staffing Cost Requirements | 2021 | Grantee | Standard of Living | Children and Youth (age 0-29) | |
| Our Place Society | Increasing digital capacity to adapt to COVID-19’s impact on services | 2021 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Housing | Adults | |
| Pacific Animal Therapy Society | Pacific Animal Therapy Society – Request for Funding | 2021 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Seniors and Elders (in and not in care) | |
| Pacific Centre Family Services Association | Building Community Counselling Capacity | 2021 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Health & Wellness | People living with Mental Illness | |
| Pacific Opera Association | Pacific Opera and Victoria Symphony present “Nature’s Voice” Summer Series | 2021 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Arts & Culture | General Public | |
| Pacific Peoples Partnership | Pacific Peoples’ Partnership Implementation of SDG Vision and Action-Plans | 2021 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Belonging & Engagement | Newcomers, Immigrants and Refugees | |
| Pacifica Housing Advisory Association | Mental Health/Wellness Training to Build Resilience During COVID-19 | 2021 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Health & Wellness | People living with Mental Illness | |
| Pandora Arts Collective Society | Conquering Isolation: Finding Wellness through Art and Community | 2021 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | People living with Mental Illness | |
| Parkinson Wellness Project | Parkinson Wellness Projects General Programs | 2021 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | General Public | |
| Pender Island Child Care Society | Family Outreach Programs | 2021 | Grantee | Getting Started in Community | Infants / Babies | |
| Peninsula Streams Society | Peninsula Streams Society Core Recovery Funding | 2021 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Environment | General Public | |
| PHA Public Health Association of British Columbia | Harvest 4 Knowledge | 2021 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | Indigenous People (First Nations, Meitis, Inuit) | |
| Phoenix Human Services Association | Rise Up Youth Employment Program | 2021 | Grantee | Economy | Children and Youth (age 0-29) | |
| Puente Theatre Society | WorkPlay residency for newcomer and IBPoC playwrights | 2021 | Grantee | Arts & Culture | Newcomers, Immigrants and Refugees | |
| Raincoast Conservation Foundation | Ecological and Cultural Discovery in the Salish Sea | 2021 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | Indigenous People (First Nations, Meitis, Inuit) | |
| Ready to Rent BC Association | RentSmart 2021-22 Program Adaptation to Virtual | 2021 | Grantee | Housing | People with Low Income or Living in Poverty | |
| Rocky Point Bird Observatory Society | Monitoring Migratory Bird Populations | 2021 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Environment | General Public | |
| Saanich Neighbourhood Place | General operations and Staff Wellness | 2021 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Health & Wellness | General Public | |
| Saanich Peninsula Memorial Park Society | Mary Winspear Streaming Equipment | 2021 | Grantee | Arts & Culture | General Public | |
| Salt Spring and Southern Gulf Islands Community Services Society | Family Place and Core Inn Youth Centre Activity Programming | 2021 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Children and Youth (age 0-29) | |
| Salt Spring Institute for Sustainability Education and Action | Building Climate Change Resilience in the Salish Sea | 2021 | Grantee | Environment | Children and Youth (age 0-29) | |
| Salvation Army Addictions Rehabilitation Centre | Helping Transform Lives | 2021 | Grantee | Housing | People Experiencing Homelessness | |
| Seniors Serving Seniors Association of British Columbia | Volunteer Education Coordinator Funding | 2021 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Seniors and Elders (in and not in care) | |
| Sierra Club of BC Foundation | Environmental Education Program Delivery in the CRD | 2021 | Grantee | Learning | Children and Youth (age 0-29) | |
| Silver Threads Service | Seniors Soup and Support | 2021 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Seniors and Elders (in and not in care) | |
| SingYourJoy Young Adult Chorus Society | SingYourJoy Again! | 2021 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | Children and Youth (age 0-29) | |
| Soap For Hope Canada Society | Essential hygiene amenities during a pandemic | 2021 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | People Experiencing Homelessness | |
| Society for Kids at Tennis | Free Tennis Lessons for Underserviced Kids | 2021 | Grantee | Sport & Recreation | People with Low Income or Living in Poverty | |
| Sooke Family Resource Society | Pre-Postnatal Education/Outreach and Youth Navigator/Outreach Staff Funding Support | 2021 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Children and Youth (age 0-29) | |
| Sooke Fine Arts Society | Sooke Fine Arts Show 2021 | 2021 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Arts & Culture | General Public | |
| Sooke Region Community Health Network | SRCHN Operations | 2021 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Seniors and Elders (in and not in care) | |
| Sooke Shelter Society | Covid-19 Mental Health Community Supports for Vulnerable Populations in Sooke | 2021 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | People Experiencing Homelessness | |
| St. Andrew’s Presbyterian Church | Music Students’ Assistance Program | 2021 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Arts & Culture | Seniors and Elders (in and not in care) | |
| Story Theatre Productions Society | Youth Leadership as Anti-Oppression Capacity Building | 2021 | Grantee | Arts & Culture | Children and Youth (age 0-29) | |
| STQEEYE’ LEARNING SOCIETY | Ts’tsa’watul | 2021 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | Indigenous People (First Nations, Metis, Inuit) | |
| Surrounded by Cedar Child and Family Services Society | Capital Costs | 2021 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Health & Wellness | Indigenous People (First Nations, Metis, Inuit) | |
| The Anglican Synod of the Diocese of BC | Belonging Begins with a Warm Welcome: Victoria’s Newcomer Community | 2021 | Grantee | Getting Started in Community | General Public | |
| The Bateman Foundation | The Wellbeing Project at the Bateman Foundation | 2021 | Grantee | Arts & Culture | General Public | |
| The Belfry Theatre Society | Arts Leadership Training Program | 2021 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Arts & Culture | General Public | |
| The Metchosin Foundation | Physically Distanced Resilient and Secure Stewardship of Resources | 2021 | Grantee | Environment | General Public | |
| The Mustard Seed Street Church | Food Security Program – Operational Support | 2021 | Grantee | Standard of Living | People with Low Income or Living in Poverty | |
| The Royal & McPherson Theatres Society | Raise the Curtains | 2021 | Grantee | Arts & Culture | General Public | |
| The Sooke Philharmonic Society | Sooke Philharmonic Concert Program | 2021 | Grantee | Arts & Culture | General Public | |
| The Starfish Environmental Society | Place-Making Leadership Labs in the City of Victoria | 2021 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | Children and Youth (age 0-29) | |
| The Victoria Youth Clinic Society | Youth and Family Counsellor | 2021 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Children and Youth (age 0-29) | |
| Theatre SKAM Association | Operations and Activities 21-22 | 2021 | Grantee | Arts & Culture | General Public | |
| Together Against Poverty Society | Legal Advocacy for Tenants | 2021 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Housing | People with Low Income or Living in Poverty | |
| Umbrella Society for Addictions and Mental Health | Concurrent Support Team (CST) | 2021 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Health & Wellness | General Public | |
| Vancouver Island Counselling Centre for Immigrants and Refugees Association | Funding for VICCIR Social and Community Services Worker | 2021 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Newcomers, Immigrants and Refugees | |
| Vancouver Island Men’s Therapy Centre Society | No One Left Behind | 2021 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | People living with Mental Illness | |
| Victoria Brain Injury Society | Intake Program | 2021 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Health & Wellness | Persons with Disabilities | |
| Victoria Choral Society | Mozart’s Requiem Concert | 2021 | Grantee | Arts & Culture | Seniors and Elders (in and not in care) | |
| Victoria Community Food Hub Society | Good Food Network Collaboration Initiative | 2021 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | People with Low Income or Living in Poverty | |
| Victoria Community Food Hub Society | (Farmbucks) Healthy Food Equity Project | 2021 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | People who Identify as Racialized | |
| Victoria Conservatory of Music | Getting Started – Early Childhood Music Education Outreach | 2021 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Getting Started in Community | Children and Youth (age 0-29) | |
| Victoria Cool Aid Society | Mobile Health Outreach | 2021 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Health & Wellness | People Experiencing Homelessness | |
| Victoria Guitar Society | Community Arts Live to Digital Transition: Learning and Capacity Enhancement | 2021 | Grantee | Arts & Culture | Children and Youth (age 0-29) | |
| Victoria Hospice Society | Victoria Hospice COVID-19 Response Community Recovery Grant | 2021 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | General Public | |
| Victoria Humane Society | Victoria Humane Society Operations Manager | 2021 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | People with Low Income or Living in Poverty | |
| Victoria Immigrant & Refugee Centre Society | Bystander Training Program | 2021 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Belonging & Engagement | Gender (women, girls, LGBTQIA2S+) | |
| Victoria Independent Film and Video Festival | Community Recovery Program | 2021 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Arts & Culture | General Public | |
| Victoria Literacy Connection Society | VLC Literacy Support for the South Island | 2021 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Learning | General Public | |
| Victoria Native Friendship Centre | Urban Indigenous Elders | 2021 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | Indigenous People (First Nations, Meitis, Inuit) | |
| Victoria Rainbow Kitchen Society | In-House Hot Meals & Food Sharing Program | 2021 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Standard of Living | Seniors and Elders (in and not in care) | |
| Victoria Restorative Justice Society | Supporting Restorative Justice Services during Victoria’s Pandemic Recovery | 2021 | Grantee | Safety | People with Low Income or Living in Poverty | |
| Victoria Sexual Assault Centre Society | Enhancing Support, Building Capacity: Supporting Survivors in Times of Crisis | 2021 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Health & Wellness | Gender (women, girls, LGBTQIA2S+) | |
| Victoria Society for Children with Autism | 2021-2022 Operation and Program Funding | 2021 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Persons with Disabilites | |
| Victoria Womens Transition House Society | Family Law Advocacy Project | 2021 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Health & Wellness | Gender (women, girls, LGBTQIA2S+) | |
| Victoria Youth Empowerment Society | Basic Needs for Homeless Youth | 2021 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Children and Youth (age 0-29) | |
| Wear 2 Start Society | Program Manager Support | 2021 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Gender (women, girls, LGBTQIA2S+) | |
| WITS Program Foundation | Reboot | 2021 | Grantee | Learning | Children and Youth (age 0-29) | |
| YMCA YWCA of Vancouver Island | Camp Thunderbird 2021 Summer Day Camps Program | 2021 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Health & Wellness | Children and Youth (age 0-29) | |
| ABBEYFIELD HOUSE ST PETER’S SOCIETY | providing counselling to residents | 2020 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | ||
| Aboriginal Coalition to End Homelessness Society | hiring a Housing Transition and Stabilization Coordinator | 2020 | Grantee | Housing | ||
| Adoptive Families Association of BC | Community Recovery Program 2020 | 2020 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | ||
| Anawim Companions Society | Community Recovery Program – staffing costs for resident and drop-in programs. | 2020 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | General Public | |
| AVI Health and Community Services Society | Overdose response | 2020 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Health & Wellness | General Public | |
| B.C. SENIOR GAMES SOCIETY | Community Recovery Program 2020 | 2020 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | ||
| Balfour’s Friends Foundation | Community Recovery Program 2020 | 2020 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | ||
| Ballet Victoria Society | artist’s salaries | 2020 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Arts & Culture | General Public | |
| BC Aboriginal Network on Disability Society | hiring a contract position for 1 year to assist the Society’s programs and clients specific to the capital region | 2020 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | ||
| BC Childrens Hospital Foundation | Community Recovery Program 2020 | 2020 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Children / Youth | |
| BC Hospice / Palliative Care Association | Community Recovery Program 2020 | 2020 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | General Public | |
| Big Brothers Big Sisters of Victoria Capital Region | staffing costs for social enterprise initiatives | 2020 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | Children / Youth | |
| Birthing Families Matter Society | Counselling program | 2020 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | ||
| Blue Bridge Theatre Society | 2020 | Grantee | Arts & Culture | |||
| Boys and Girls Club Services of Greater Victoria | for staffing costs and operations. | 2020 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Belonging & Engagement | Children / Youth | |
| Bridges for Women Society | for staffing costs, operations costs and digital adaption. | 2020 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Standard of Living | Adults | |
| British Columbia Black History Awareness Society | outreach to students and youth regarding anti-racism skills, training, and involvement | 2020 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | ||
| British Columbia Lions Society for Children with Disabilities | virtual programming for children with disabilities | 2020 | Grantee | Learning | Children / Youth | |
| Broadmead Care Society | for the Creative Arts program, including staffing and supplies, for people with Alzheimer’s etc. | 2020 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Health & Wellness | Elderly | |
| Burnside Gorge Community Association | for digital adaption of services. | 2020 | Grantee | Standard of Living | Children / Youth | |
| Canadian Federation of the Blind | maintaining and augmenting mentoring, public awareness, and outreach work | 2020 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | ||
| CCPA Canadian Heritage Arts Society | for operations and adaption costs to ensure organization can stay open and maintain operations. | 2020 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Arts & Culture | Adults | |
| Child Abuse Prevention and Counselling Society of Greater Victoria | for digital adaptation of services, including counselling services. | 2020 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | ||
| Citadel Therapy Canine Society | for training of medical services dogs and related costs. | 2020 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | ||
| Community First Foundation | to provided 3 weeks of food for children. | 2020 | Grantee | Standard of Living | ||
| Connections Place Society | for staffing and operational costs, including peer support position. | 2020 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Health & Wellness | ||
| Constable Gerald Breese Centre for Traumatic Life Losses | Community Recovery Program 2020 | 2020 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | General Public | |
| Crisis Intervention and Public Information Society of Greater Vic | for staffing costs associated with youth crisis line and IT costs of remote programming. | 2020 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | General Public | |
| Crohns and Colitis Canada | the staffing and resources needed for the development, implementation and evaluation of the Gutsy Mental Health Support Program | 2020 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | ||
| Cycling Without Age Society | toward getting another Trishaw bicycle operational, training pilots in COVID safety practices, or sufficient safety equipment. | 2020 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | ||
| Dance Victoria Society | for the provision of studios at no charge for local dance artists to develop new work. | 2020 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Arts & Culture | General Public | |
| Esquimalt Nation | enhancing outreach services, providing wages, and preparing nursing clinic | 2020 | Grantee | Standard of Living | ||
| Extreme Outreach Society | Community Recovery Program 2020 | 2020 | Grantee | General Public | ||
| Fairfield Community Association of Victoria | food security programming and CNH coordinator role | 2020 | Grantee | Standard of Living | General Public | |
| Fernwood Neighbourhood Resource Group Society | providing good food boxes to people in need | 2020 | Grantee | Standard of Living | General Public | |
| Friends of Living and Learning Through Loss Society | grieving youth through individual counselling, and support the ED continue to help the organization thrive and grow | 2020 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Health & Wellness | Children / Youth | |
| Friends of the Dominion Astrophysical Observatory Society | School-based programming | 2020 | Grantee | Learning | ||
| Frontier College | for the Community Literacy Catalyst programming, literacy project in partnership with Pacheedaht, Ditidaht, T?Sou-ke, and Sc?ianew First Nations. | 2020 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | General Public | |
| Galiano Club | for food and staffing costs. | 2020 | Grantee | Standard of Living | General Public | |
| Galiano Health Care Society | for COVID support and education for local population, PPE, and extra janitorial and other operations costs. | 2020 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | ||
| Garth Homer Society | to lease additional program space | 2020 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Disabled | |
| Georgia Strait Alliance | for staffing costs and digital adaptions to maintain programming in capital region. | 2020 | Grantee | Environment | General Public | |
| Greater Victoria Citizens Counselling Centre | for renovations to improve air circulation, staffing costs, and digital adaption. | 2020 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Adults | |
| Greater Victoria DanceWorks Association | General operating funding | 2020 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Arts & Culture | Children / Youth | |
| Greater Victoria Police Victim Services | the purchase of two laptops and accompanying software | 2020 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | General Public | |
| Greater Victoria Volunteer Society | For staffing costs, IT, office supplies, and honorariums for volunteers. | 2020 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | General Public | |
| Growing Chefs Society | Staffing costs for programming | 2020 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Children / Youth | |
| Habitat Acquisition Trust | costs associated with building a new website | 2020 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Environment | General Public | |
| Harmony Project Society | staffing costs, upsizing instruments, purchasing additional music stands and sanitization supplies, technology upgrades, and festival-related costs | 2020 | Grantee | Arts & Culture | ||
| Home is Where We Live LifeCycles Project Society | for Food Share Network coordinator position and to hire an intern to support additional work load due to COVID. | 2020 | Grantee | Standard of Living | General Public | |
| Horticulture Centre of the Pacific | expanding technological capacity for programs adapted to online delivery | 2020 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Environment | General Public | |
| Indigenous Perspectives Society | to update web server and basic rebuild of IPS and Indigenous Caregivers of BC websites that they run, as well as additional equipment for remote work | 2020 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | ||
| InspireHealth Society | for technology upgrades including: laptops, Zoom, VOIP phone system, secure remote medical records and file access, online collaboration tools, and costs for tech support for patients and staff. | 2020 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | ||
| Inter Cultural Association of Greater Victoria | to ensure frontline staff are supported to provide resources and services to immigrants and ensure essential needs of those most vulnerable are meet. | 2020 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | General Public | |
| Intrepid Theatre Company Society | for modifying the Metro Studio Theatre into a cabaret seating style to ensure proper spacing and safety. | 2020 | Grantee | Arts & Culture | General Public | |
| Island Deaf and Hard of Hearing Centre Association | for technological adaptation and capital expenses. | 2020 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Health & Wellness | Disabled | |
| Island Kids Cancer Association | To provide children, youth and their families access to service providers such as music therapists, play therapists, art therapists, counsellors and psychologists. | 2020 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | ||
| Island Sexual Health Society | To provide ongoing education and services to our most vulnerable populations with a special emphasis on gender care. | 2020 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Adults | |
| Island String Players Society | streaming concerts and the publicity campaign to promote them | 2020 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Arts & Culture | General Public | |
| James Bay Health and Community Services Society | General operating funding | 2020 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | General Public | |
| James Bay New Horizons Society | staffing costs to train volunteers to talk to isolated seniors and have someone acailable if there is more of a clinical need for help | 2020 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | ||
| Jewish Family Services Of Vancouver Island | General operating funding | 2020 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | ||
| Kaleidoscope Theatre Production Society | to adapt Kaleidoscope’s Mainstage programming to tour local communities and perform outdoors, providing high-quality, traditional mainstage programming. | 2020 | Grantee | Arts & Culture | General Public | |
| KidSport Canada BC | Access to sport for children and youth | 2020 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Children / Youth | |
| Langham Court Theatre Society | operational costs associated with providing rental space, which includes staffing and utilities, for the next year | 2020 | Grantee | Arts & Culture | General Public | |
| Linden Singers of Victoria | staffing costs and production, recording, and streaming costs | 2020 | Grantee | Arts & Culture | ||
| Living Edge Community Church | Community Recovery Program 2020 | 2020 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | General Public | |
| Marie Esther Society | For the salaries of two accredited music therapists and purchase portable, musical equipment, instruments, and adaptive technology. | 2020 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Health & Wellness | Elderly | |
| Mayne Island Conservancy Society | staff costs, materials, and overhead for habitat restoration projects, native plant nursery, and landowner consultation program | 2020 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Environment | ||
| Mayne Island Health Centre Association | to replace old computers | 2020 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | ||
| Meal Exchange | Community Recovery Program 2020 | 2020 | Grantee | Standard of Living | General Public | |
| Move Adapted Fitness and Rehabilitation Society of BC | for staff wages and operational costs. | 2020 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | General Public | |
| Our Place Society | increase available dining room space by creating all weather space in the courtyard. | 2020 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Standard of Living | Adults | |
| Pacific Centre Family Services Association | staffing costs, operational costs, and IT costs | 2020 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Health & Wellness | General Public | |
| Pacific Institute for Sport Excellence | for program adaptations, including additional staff time, PPE and additional training. | 2020 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Health & Wellness | ||
| Pacific Institute for Sport Excellence | To implement and execute the strategic plan in the next fiscal year. | 2020 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Health & Wellness | ||
| Pacific Training Centre for the Blind Society | for staffing costs for program delivery. | 2020 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | ||
| PEERS Victoria Resources Society | for camping supplies for persons who are sheltering outside, food security, rent or other COVID-related expenses, and staffing. | 2020 | Grantee | Housing | General Public | |
| Pender Island Recreation & Agricultural Hall Association | for operations and staffing costs. | 2020 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | General Public | |
| Pender Islands Conservancy Association | staffing and Nature Centre costs | 2020 | Grantee | Environment | General Public | |
| Peninsula Streams Society | staffing costs and technical support | 2020 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Environment | General Public | |
| Pepaken Hautw Food Systems Education Foundation | for staffing costs for programming. | 2020 | Grantee | Standard of Living | ||
| PHS Community Services Society | for PPE, clinical care supplies, and food for shelter residents and program participants. | 2020 | Grantee | Housing | ||
| Power to Be Adventure Therapy Society | Accessibility to outdoor recreation for people with disabilities | 2020 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Children / Youth | |
| Puente Theatre Society | underrepresented artists in creating theatre that promotes cultural diversity | 2020 | Grantee | Arts & Culture | General Public | |
| Raincoast Conservation Foundation | to cover operational expenses of the Gulf Islands Forest Project (GIF Project). | 2020 | Grantee | Environment | ||
| Ready to Rent BC Association | to continue to provide virtual RentSmart tenant education courses to CRD residents. | 2020 | Grantee | Housing | ||
| Roots of Empathy | Community Recovery Program 2020 | 2020 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | ||
| Saanich Neighbourhood Place | staffing costs to support increasing demand for outreach to youth and families | 2020 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | General Public | |
| Salt Spring Institute for Sustainability Education and Action | Climate Change action program | 2020 | Grantee | Environment | ||
| Salt Spring Island Farmland Trust Society | Community Recovery Program 2020 | 2020 | Grantee | Standard of Living | ||
| Salt Spring Island Preschool Society | staffing and cleaning costs | 2020 | Grantee | Learning | ||
| Salvation Army Addictions Rehabilitation Centre | Community Recovery Program 2020 | 2020 | Grantee | |||
| Sierra Club of BC Foundation | for staffing costs for programming. | 2020 | Grantee | Environment | General Public | |
| SingYourJoy Young Adult Chorus Society | preparing and leading rehearsals with young choir members and technological needs | 2020 | Grantee | Arts & Culture | ||
| Sooke Family Resource Society | to provide additional space costs and increased sessions for in-person affordable counselling, staffing, and the purchase of laptops, cameras and headphones for new virtual serve delivery models. | 2020 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | General Public | |
| Starlight Children’s Foundation Canada | activity packages for sick children | 2020 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | ||
| Story Theatre Productions Society | staffing costs | 2020 | Grantee | Arts & Culture | General Public | |
| Suddenly Dance Theatre Society | staffing and operational costs | 2020 | Grantee | Arts & Culture | General Public | |
| Surrounded by Cedar Child and Family Services Society | for additional laptops and audio-conferencing licenses. | 2020 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Health & Wellness | General Public | |
| Swan Lake Christmas Hill Nature Sanctuary Society | to purchase a semi-permanent outdoor tent structure to serve as a safe gathering space for our broader community, to purchase more mobile pop-up tents, and to create a kit-based nature program for newcomers to Victoria and offer these supplies free of char | 2020 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Environment | General Public | |
| The Anglican Church of St John the Divine Victoria | to install an awning to continue operating outdoors, a cooler, day labourer to help with lifting and purchasing food. | 2020 | Grantee | Standard of Living | General Public | |
| The Anglican Synod of the Diocese of BC | for staffing, operational costs, technological adaptations, training, and IT for the Refugee Sponsorship Program. | 2020 | Grantee | Getting Started in Community | General Public | |
| The Circle Salt Spring Education Society | the rental of The Farmers’ Institute main exhibition building | 2020 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | ||
| The Farmlands Trust Greater Victoria Society | staffing costs and programming costs | 2020 | Grantee | Environment | General Public | |
| The John Howard Society of Victoria | To support the JHS KidStart Mentoring Program, largely for general operational costs and program adaptation due to COVID-19. | 2020 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | ||
| The Royal & McPherson Theatres Society | for operating costs, including labour, utilities, janitorial and service contracts. | 2020 | Grantee | Arts & Culture | ||
| Theatre SKAM Association | for operations and staffing to maintain programs and performances. | 2020 | Grantee | Arts & Culture | General Public | |
| Threshold Housing Society | Technology upgrades | 2020 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Housing | General Public | |
| Tides Canada Initiatives Society | to support staff salaries, additional staff training for online programming, and development of an online platform to adapt, deliver and expand in-person workshop into an online workshop. | 2020 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | General Public | |
| Together Against Poverty Society | to assist people with evictions, payment of rental arrears, and access to emergency COVID and post-COVID related benefits. | 2020 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Housing | ||
| Umbrella Society for Addictions and Mental Health | Indigenous Support Worker | 2020 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Health & Wellness | General Public | |
| Vancouver Island Counselling Centre for Immigrants and Refugees Association | to create a succession plan for VICCIR Director of Services and co-founder. | 2020 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | General Public | |
| Vancouver Island Kids Klub Centre Society | maintaining the free lunches for children for the coming school year | 2020 | Grantee | Standard of Living | ||
| Vancouver Island Men’s Therapy Centre Society | capital and staffing costs | 2020 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Adults | |
| Vancouver Island Regional Library | Seniors programming | 2020 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | General Public | |
| Vancouver Island School of Art | the online drop-in drawing program | 2020 | Grantee | Arts & Culture | ||
| Victoria Arts Council | off-setting expenses related to producing the new magazine, UNTIL, over the coming year | 2020 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Arts & Culture | General Public | |
| Victoria Brain Injury Society | staffing costs | 2020 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Health & Wellness | General Public | |
| Victoria Choral Society | General operating funding | 2020 | Grantee | Arts & Culture | General Public | |
| Victoria Community Food Hub Society | food literacy and food access in the Capital Region ($25,000) and working with IXE Creative to understand needs of community from an equity lens ($15,000) | 2020 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | General Public | |
| Victoria Compost and Conservation Education Society | Community and school-based programming | 2020 | Grantee | Environment | ||
| Victoria Conservatory of Music | Capital costs | 2020 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Arts & Culture | General Public | |
| Victoria Cool Aid Society | Community Recovery Program 2020 | 2020 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Standard of Living | Adults | |
| Victoria Disability Resource Centre | staffing costs | 2020 | Grantee | Standard of Living | Disabled | |
| Victoria Festival of Authors Society | ensuring programming can remain free | 2020 | Grantee | Arts & Culture | ||
| Victoria Hospice Society | for increased costs to bereavement services and health and safety requirements. | 2020 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | ||
| Victoria Immigrant & Refugee Centre Society | staffing a database designer | 2020 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Belonging & Engagement | General Public | |
| Victoria Independent Film and Video Festival | for the 2021 festival. | 2020 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Arts & Culture | General Public | |
| Victoria Literacy Connection Society | General operating funding | 2020 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Learning | ||
| Victoria Native Friendship Centre | to hire a senior contract manager and human resources position. | 2020 | Grantee | Standard of Living | General Public | |
| Victoria Philharmonic Choir Society | musical direction, accompaniment and section leadership, venue rental and music purchases for the workshop/rehearsal sessions | 2020 | Grantee | Arts & Culture | General Public | |
| Victoria Restorative Justice Society | staffing costs and general operating costs | 2020 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | General Public | |
| Victoria Sexual Assault Centre Society | to sustain staff hours to provide survivors with emotional support and information about VSAC’s services through the access line program, and cover operational costs for a new cloud-based phone system. | 2020 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Health & Wellness | Adults | |
| Victoria Therapeutic Riding Association | operation costs, staffing and program adaptation | 2020 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Health & Wellness | General Public | |
| Victoria Womens Transition House Society | for staffing costs for counselling for women experiencing domestic violence and abuse or who are leaving or have left their abusive relationships. | 2020 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Health & Wellness | Adults | |
| Vox Humana Chamber Choir Society | General operating funding | 2020 | Grantee | Arts & Culture | ||
| Wear 2 Start Society | staffing costs for volunteer coordinator | 2020 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | General Public | |
| West Coast Childrens Choral Society | General operating funding | 2020 | Grantee | Arts & Culture | Children / Youth | |
| West Coast Reach Association | honoraria for instructors, administration and guest presenters, and the purchase of supplies for virtual recording and presentations | 2020 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | ||
| WITS Program Foundation | Program funding | 2020 | Grantee | Learning | Children / Youth | |
| Young Entrepreneurs Of Canada Association | Online Educational Workshops | 2020 | Grantee | Learning | ||
| 1000×5 Children’s Book Recycling Project Society | 1000X5 Children’s Book Recycling Project Society | 2019 | Grantee | Learning | 1000X5 Children’s Book Recycling Project Society supports young children and learning by providing books for babies and preschoolers in this crucial early brain development and literacy stage. Every child gains a home library and has those books read to them 1000 times by age five, building lifelong language, literacy and social-emotional skills. Many families, due to poverty or unfamiliarity with early reading do not own many or any books. Collaboration is broadly and sustainably based: 12,000 families at 36 Greater Victoria elementary schools donate books; 1000 children receive 3 books monthly (30 books/year) from 28 agencies (70 programs). Visit Website | |
| 1UP Victoria Single Parent Resource Centre Society | Single Parent Family Practical Support Program | 2019 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Standard of Living | 1Up cultivates community partnerships to provide single parent families with practical supports such as emergency food vouchers, school supplies, Christmas hampers, access to professional services, and community inclusion opportunities. Support for this project will greatly increase the capacity of 1Up to provide these and other much needed practical supports to a greater number of vulnerable low-income single parent families. The Member Services lead staff will assess and match the needs of single parent families with community partners and donors to provide and deliver new and expanded assistance to support the development of strong families and bright futures. Visit Website | |
| Aboriginal Coalition to End Homelessness Society | Building, Aligning, Transforming: Systems & Services for Indigenous Homeless | 2019 | Grantee | Housing | The Aboriginal Coalition to End Homelessness (ACEH) seeks to develop an Indigenous-Specific Systems Improvement Map (ISSIM) to identify services, programs, and resources that assist Indigenous people who are experiencing homelessness in Greater Victoria. In partnership with the Greater Victoria Coalition to End Homelessness, ACEH will include other key service providers in the city and Indigenous peoples with lived experience to jointly work on the ISSIM, which will include Cultural Assets Mapping and research regarding leading practice Indigenous housing models province and nation-wide. An Outreach and Community Engagement Worker will lead the project. Visit Website | |
| Ballet Victoria Society | New Dance Program for People with Parkinson’s Disease | 2019 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Health and Wellness | Ballet Victoria will host community members with Parkinson’s Disease and facilitate dance classes that promote physical, emotional, and psychological well-being through exercise and social engagement with peers. Program instructors will work from a proven methodology, learned from New York-based “Dance for PD,” to ensure that people with all levels of mobility are able to fully engage with the program. The program preserves or restores dignity to those affected by Parkinson’s and other conditions affecting motor control and communicates a clear message that dance is an activity in which everyone belongs. Visit Website | |
| BC Cancer Foundation | Equipment -Stereotactic Ablative Radiotherapy – (SABR) at BC Cancer-Victoria | 2019 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | BC Cancer Victoria’s goal is to help people with cancer to live longer and better. Radiation therapy is a primary treatment pillar and cutting edge Stereotactic Ablative Radiotherapy – (SABR) is at the leading edge of science. Described as surgery without a knife, requiring fewer doses & visits, this therapy is highly effective in both curative and palliative treatments. A special piece of equipment, an immobilization board, ensures that patients are securely immobilized so that their tumour can be seen clearly and can better targeted with fewer side effects to skin and organs. This is a priority. Visit Website | |
| Bridges for Women Society | Women Mentoring Women: A Community Approach | 2019 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Standard of Living | Women Mentoring Women is a community mentorship program connecting women impacted by violence and trauma with working women, entrepreneurs, employers and workplaces to inspire confidence, strength and capacity for sustainable employment. Two cohorts of women completing the Bridges Employment Program will embark on a four-month journey of learning and networking that will increase their connection to the local labour market, including building communication skills, boundary-setting, financial literacy and informational interview skills. The cohorts will also network with employers and entrepreneurs. Results include growing community attachments, increased self-confidence and gaining part-time to full-time employment in various career fields. Visit Website | |
| Broadmead Care Society | Better Rest for Brain & Body | 2019 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Health & Wellness | Broadmead Care has a vital need to replace 32 beds across two care homes – the current beds are a variety of ages and beyond repair. A request was put forward in December 2018 to Island Health which unfortunately was denied. The people living in Broadmead Care homes are some of the most vulnerable members of our community who deserve to sleep in a bed that ensures their safety and comfort. Broadmead Care’s purpose is to build communities where people can experience wellbeing and happiness. Studies show that a good night’s sleep directly contributes to health and wellbeing. Visit Website | |
| Camosun College Foundation | Building Capacity for Literacy System Navigation in the GVA | 2019 | Grantee | Learning | The “Building Capacity for Literacy System Navigation in the GVA” project will endeavour to build on Greater Victoria Alliance for Literacy’s work to improve literacy system strategies, effectiveness and coordination by developing and implementing a referral system between all community literacy support stakeholders. This project strives to ensure that the literacy and non-literacy support needs of learners are handled efficiently by the most appropriate organizations. This project will improve awareness and accessibility towards appropriate personalized literacy and literacy-related services for vulnerable populations including Newcomers, Indigenous communities and relevant intersectionalities, and will contribute to professional development for literacy providers. Visit Website | |
| Camosun College Foundation | Aboriginal Culinary Arts, Tourism and Hospitality Program (ACATHM) Bursaries | 2019 | Grantee | Housing | “The Aboriginal Culinary Arts, Tourism and Hospitality Program” is a 12-month entry-level program which includes a 2-month work placement and is specifically designed for Aboriginal students with an interest in preparing for a career in the growing area of Aboriginal Tourism. Upon completion, each student will receive Professional Cook Level 1 that includes work-based training, Introduction to Restaurant Operations, Indigenous Tourism Perspectives, FOODSAFE Level 1, Serving It Right, WHMIS, Occupational First Aid Level 1 and the Indigenous Tourism BC First Host certificates. Bursaries will provide financial support for housing and food costs while the students are in the program. Visit Website | |
| Canadian Mental Health Association B.C. Division | Living Life to the Full – Older Adult | 2019 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | “Living Life to the Full for Older Adults” is a mental health program based on cognitive behavioural principles. An eight-week course is offered in a group format to 12 – 18 participants. Trained Facilitators guide participants through group activities to work on improving mood, feelings and behaviours. Included are workbooks and worksheets along with moderated discussion where participants are encouraged to share ideas and provide mutual support. Research shows that guided self-help is an effective method of enhancing skills to help with life changes, as well as tackling issues such as stress, anxiety and depression. Visit Website | |
| Canadian Paraplegic Association (B.C.) | Mental Health Supports for People with Disabilities in Victoria | 2019 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | The Peer Support Program and its activities provide opportunities for people living with a spinal cord injury to form lasting social connections that reduce isolation and result in improved emotional well-being. Through a series of events held throughout the year, people come together in a relaxed environment where they can share and learn from each other. Events range from social outings in the community to opportunities to try outdoor recreational activities that many may not have thought possible because of their injury. Participants in events become more socially and physically active and participate more in their local community. Visit Website | |
| Centre For Earth and Spirit Society | The INTENSIVE JOURNAL – An Innovative Rehabilitation Process | 2019 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | The “Intensive Journal” project is a one-year collaborative program that benefits approximately 95 adult participants. The project is a structured, professionally facilitated therapeutic writing program. It engages small groups of qualified clients in a trauma-informed care process for building self-esteem and empathy for self and others, alleviating the stigmatizing effects of childhood and adult trauma. This program engenders personal confidence and empowers individuals to re-establish a sense of personal wholeness and worth. The project goal is to re-integrate clients with family, society and workplace. It is a safe, private, non-judgmental small group workshop process inclusive of clients and care providers. Visit Website | |
| Cetus Research & Conservation Society | Mitigating Noise Impacts on Southern Resident Killer Whales | 2019 | Grantee | Environmental Sustainability | This project will expand Cetus Research & Conservation Society’s capacity for monitoring endangered Southern Resident Killer Whales (SRKWs) and collecting data on physical and acoustic vessel traffic disturbances. Cetus crews will deploy a newly-acquired mobile self-contained hydrophone buoy in the vicinity of whales twice daily which will document whale calls and vessel noise during whale-watching activity. This data will be collated with data from other listening stations to contribute significantly to the understanding of the direct impacts of vessel noise to at-risk mammals and will provide necessary evidence to support further meaningful protections for vulnerable whales, particularly SRKWs. Visit Website | |
| Child Abuse Prevention and Counselling Society of Greater Victoria | Raising Happy Kids | 2019 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | This program increases the region’s capacity to serve abuse affected families across Greater Victoria, including Westshore. If funded, the program will continue providing a proven, cost effective, evidence-based model of parental group counselling and education. This program addresses the needs of vulnerable wait-listed children and youth by giving caregivers the skills to effectively support their children while waiting for individual counselling. As a result, roughly 50 families will be served which will increase protective factors for children, help with safety planning and self-regulation, and reduce the amount of isolation, stigmatization and family stress. Visit Website | |
| Community Social Planning Council of Greater Victoria | We Live Here – A Seniors-Led Community-Based Research Project | 2019 | Grantee | Housing | The “We Live Here” program will engage local seniors in housing issues starting with a pilot project in the James Bay neighbourhood. This project will engage seniors to reach out to each other using a peer mentorship model through a variety of focus groups for advocacy training. The engagement will help to identify and address how seniors are particularly vulnerable to the local housing crisis and will develop local solutions for supporting housing stability and seniors’ ageing-in-place in their communities. The seniors’ engagement and leadership built into the project will increase seniors’ connectedness and resilience while supporting broader policy. Visit Website | |
| Construction Foundation of BC (2012) Society | The SHIFT | 2019 | Grantee | Standard of Living | The Construction Foundation works across multiple industries to support under-utilized groups, including youth at-risk, to gain skills and experiences that lead to employability. The “SHIFT” program is focused on helping at-risk youth, including youth in and transitioning out of care, to obtain driver’s licenses, participate in programs leading to employment opportunities including apprenticeships and complete work-related safety certificates. Funding would help pay for the cost of driver’s license training for youth at-risk. Visit Website | |
| Cornerstone Youth Society | Sanctuary Youth Center Volunteer Mentor Training Program | 2019 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Youth aged 14-22 years old have found a supportive and non-judgmental place in downtown Victoria at the Sanctuary Youth Centre. This drop-in center takes care of basic needs, such as meals, showers and laundry facilities. It is also a safe and friendly place to connect with staff and volunteers. Relationships grow and trust is built. In 2017, Rotary Harbourside funds helped launch the Girls One-On-One Mentoring Program. With initial success, it was determined that a formal Volunteer Mentor Training Program was required to increase mentoring capacity and help move vulnerable young people towards healthier and more fulfilling lives. Visit Website | |
| Cowichan Green Community Foundation | Inclusive Farming at the Cowichan Agricultural Seed Hub | 2019 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | The “Inclusive Farming at the Cowichan Agricultural Seed Hub” project of Cowichan Green Community Foundation (CGCF) aims to offer hands-on farming and gardening support to youth with developmental and physical disabilities with a goal of entering the agriculture sector and increasing food security. Participants will learn a variety of skills relating to the production of food and locally-adapted seeds. Participants will assist with a market garden and new garden centre, selling the produce and seeds, learning valuable marketing, customer service, and promotion skills as a way of becoming more self-sustaining and employ the participants longer term. Visit Website | |
| Creating Community Wellness Society | Community Health Resources | 2019 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | The Creating Community Wellness Society will make the exam rooms for its Nurse Practitioner and Medical Office Assistant fully accessible to patients using wheelchairs, lacking ability to grasp door handles etc. and will supply these rooms with medical service disposables such as cotton swabs, bandages, tongue depressors etc. This will involve building a wheelchair ramp to the lower floor and enlarging the washroom at Centennial United Church, installing running water at that location and in one of the two rooms at the Cook St Activity Centre, and installing lever-taps instead of turn-taps in both locations. Visit Website | |
| Crisis Intervention and Public Information Society of Greater Victoria | Youth Suicide Prevention Program – Integrating Digital and In-person Services | 2019 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | This program works to save lives by delivering in-school presentations on mindfulness and suicide prevention in Greater Victoria and by providing crisis and emotional support online at Youthspace.ca. Expanding on existing work of these programs as well as that of YouthTalk email counselling (through PCFSA) and newly piloted follow-up service through Youthspace.ca, this program will seek to better coordinate services by building pathways between online services and local in-person mental health supports for youth. This will help to fill gaps and provide youth with mental health care that is responsive, connected and easily accessible. Visit Website | |
| Crohn’s And Colitis Canada / Crohn Et Colite Canada | Education and Community Outreach in the Capital Area | 2019 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Funding would provide education and peer support for people living with Crohn’s disease or ulcerative colitis. 1 in 140 people live with these lifelong diseases involving inflamed sections of the gastrointestinal tract, often resulting in extreme pain, urgent bathroom visits, hospital stays and multiple surgeries. A diagnosis of either of these diseases is often devastating. Without cures, current therapies are focused on achieving and maintaining freedom from symptoms. Education and peer support are vital to peoples’ quality of life and ensures best health practices and services are available to patients, caregivers, and the Crohn’s and colitis community as a whole. Visit Website | |
| Dance Victoria Society | Interactive Archive Website to Complement a Book Commission | 2019 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Arts & Culture | Dance Victoria will engage a web designer to develop an interactive website to complement a book it has commissioned celebrating pre- and post-colonial dance in the region. Because the book’s content will be limited, the decision was taken to build an interactive website that is a platform for shared video, profiles of dance leaders, experiential stories, reviews, clippings, and digital copies of house programs. The website will be promoted widely through local media and directly to local dance schools to encourage participation in writing our shared history. Contributors will include ENGL 407 UVic students and the general public. Visit Website | |
| Dawson Heights Housing Ltd. | Assisted Listen-Loop System | 2019 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | At Dawson Heights, over 60 percent of our population experience hearing loss. Part of our commitment to the seniors we serve is to provide opportunities to engage in the community through meaningful recreation programs. Hearing loss is a main barrier to residents participating in recreation programs, as reported by the residents themselves. A Hearing Loop System allows for the transmission of sound directly into the hearing aid, cutting out background noises and reverberation, thus increasing the effectiveness of the transmitted signal. The installation of a hearing loop system would allow for increased participation in programs while decreasing social isolation. Visit Website | |
| Downtown Blanshard Advisory Committee | Mental Health Enhancement for Youth (MHEY) | 2019 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | This project provides timely access to mental health supports and system navigation for youth aged ten to nineteen contending with issues such as anxiety, depression and suicidal ideation. By providing additional service, this project will help improve wellness, safety, anxiety reduction, depression reduction and access to key services/supports. This project has been developed based on ten years of providing these types of mental health supports, primarily to youth aged twelve to nineteen. It also responds to a huge service gap identified for youth aged ten to eleven identified through drop-ins, groups, camps and schools. Visit Website | |
| Farmfolk/Cityfolk Society | Irrigation Capacity Upgrade for Community Farm and Learning Center | 2019 | Grantee | Standard of Living | Lohbrunner Farm is held in Trust by FarmFolk CityFolk, managed through a long-term lease with the Lohbrunner Community Farm Co-op (LCFC). LCFC’s vision is to create access to affordable land for farmers, supply fresh organic vegetables to the community and be a centre for education and training for sustainable farming practices. LCFC is also a hub for school children and other community groups to learn and participate in food production. Currently, there are three intensive vegetable and berry farm enterprises, numerous school groups and day camps. Funding would support an upgraded irrigation system to thrive as a community hub. Visit Website | |
| FERNWOOD NEIGHBOURHOOD RESOURCE GROUP SOCIETY On Behalf of The Coalition of Neighbourhood Houses | Innovation & Collaboration | 2019 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | The Coalition of Neighbourhood Houses is comprised of nine member agencies who deliver services to children, youth and families to enhance connection, belonging and engagement in the neighbourhoods they live. Funding for this twelve-month project would support the Coalition to enhance its profile and increase opportunities for collaboration with the Ministry of Children and Family Development, Ministry of Mental Health and Addictions, Island Health, Municipal Government and others. This project will result in stronger, more collaborative relationships with key stakeholders, allowing for more sustainable and comprehensive programming for all member Neighbourhood Houses, benefiting families across the region. Visit Website | |
| Galiano Conservancy Association | One Island, One Earth Initiative: Focus on Food | 2019 | Grantee | Environmental Sustainability | The Galiano Conservancy’s forest gardens, educational programs, and social enterprises demonstrate low-input, climate-adapted food production that incorporates locally adapted species and traditional ecological knowledge. This project will expand the delivery, sustainability, and accessibility of the Conservancy’s programs and products, focusing on the Nuts’a’maat Forage Forest, the Forest Garden Tea brand, and the Conservancy’s plant nursery. Funding will support market expansion and strengthened relationships with local First Nations, businesses, and organizations, with the goal of facilitating broader engagement. Project activities will be guided by an ecological footprint and environmental justice framework as part of the Conservancy’s One Island, One Earth Initiative. Visit Website | |
| Greater Victoria Public Library Board | Phase 1: Plan & Design the Digital Media Labs | 2019 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Learning | Greater Victoria Public Library’s strategic goal is to offer new tools and learning opportunities that support the creativity and self-expression of individuals in the community while increasing the use and awareness of existing resources offered. Funding would support a Digital Media Lab that requires purchasing technology equipment so that patrons can convert photographs, slides, audio cassette tapes and VHS tapes into digital formats. A pilot Lab will be established at the Central Branch. In late 2020, a second Lab will be created in the newly constructed Esquimalt Branch. Program Delivery and Partnership Projects will launch in 2021. Visit Website | |
| Greater Victoria Volunteer Society | Humboldt Valley Neighbour to Neighbour Volunteer Network | 2019 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | Volunteer Victoria needs to better understand how informal volunteer networks establish and sustain themselves while meeting the needs of a diverse population of residents looking to build community and reduce isolation and loneliness. This pilot includes 150+ residents, owners and renters in four high-rise buildings in the downtown core who currently have some, none or limited connections with each other. 56% of potential participants are over the age of 60, 54% of respondents note a lack of family or friends, while 36% identify a lack of mobility and isolation as risk factors. Project replication in other neighbourhoods is hoped-for. Visit Website | |
| Gulf Islands Early Learning Society | A Roof for the Salt Spring Early Learning Centre | 2019 | Grantee | Learning | Funding will support a new roof to replace the leaking, cedar shake roof and protect this important community preschool. Cost estimates indicate roughly $40,000 for a new metal roof and gutters. The school has been able to set aside $4,000 so far, but requires funding assistance to get this job done. This past winter, buckets were placed to catch leaking drips, but the roof must be replaced soon to avoid building damage. The Salt Spring Early Learning Centre provides 20% of the licensed childcare spots for children ages 0-5 available on the Island. Visit Website | |
| Gulf Islands Marine Rescue Society | RCMSAR25 Junior Cadet Work Experience Program 2020-2021 | 2019 | Grantee | Learning | The project will enable the RCMSAR25 to expand its volunteer capabilities over a two-year period (2020-2021) in the Gulf Islands communities. It will do so by training eight senior high school students each year to be a qualified regular crew in Canada and enabling graduates to move forward if they wish with a related career. It will thus increase community engagement with high school youth/families in marine search and rescue activities and increase capabilities and readiness in marine search and rescue in the Gulf Islands where boating is a regular activity carried out by a large proportion of the population. | |
| Gulf Islands Seniors Residence Association (GISRA) | Water Conservation Project – Housekeeping Upgrade | 2019 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Environmental Sustainability | GISRA’s Meadowbrook facility is currently reviewing water usage practices and implementing conservation measures. By replacing all existing top-loading washing machines with front-loaders, Meadowbrook will significantly reduce water and energy consumption. This project aligns with the S.S.I. Foundation Vital Sign of Environment and Water, the Victoria Foundation Vital Sign of Environmental Sustainability, and SDG 12, Responsible Consumption and Production. Furthermore, with the ability to raise the front-loading washing machines to an ergonomically appropriate height, residents would benefit by having far easier access to the machines. This in turn would be safer and would help maintain their feeling of independence. | |
| Harmony Project Society of British Columbia | Harmony Project Sooke | 2019 | Grantee | Arts & Culture | Harmony Project Sooke (HPS) wishes to improve and expand its out-of-school music education program, which provides professional music instruction to low-income youth in the Sooke region. All students enrolled in group classes and private lessons receive an instrument to take home. HPS builds orchestras in the community and arranges performances and field trips. The program provides a safe haven with healthy snacks and non-musical activities. Students gain life skills such as discipline, collaboration and teamwork. As they become musically competent, students develop learning and thinking skills, make academic progress, increase cultural understanding and make strong social and community connections. Visit Website | |
| Home Is Where We Live-Life Cycles Project Society | Growing the Food Share Network within the CRD | 2019 | Grantee | Standard of Living | The Food Share Network (FSN), in collaboration with the Community Social Planning Council, would create an evaluation tool that measures the successes and gaps of the FSN. The evaluation of the FSN would include all stakeholders, including but not limited to, stores, farmers, food distribution centres, non-profits and the recipients of food. The evaluation tool would amalgamate and summarize the data, helping to identify goals, help set targets and identify best practices. The data provided by the evaluation would provide FSN with valuable information on how to optimize use of its limited resources to best support the community. | |
| Hulitan Family and Community Services Society | Fostering Inclusion, Communication and Relationships with First Nations. | 2019 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | Led by First Nations educators, Hulitan will further relationships between First Nations and service providers while promoting early childhood development. Sign-enhanced language (SEL) training will be provided at five sites: three on-reserve sites that require support for their SEL programs that began in 2019, and two new sites that have been waiting to join the collaboration (one on-reserve and one urban group). This project supports children’s learning, communication skills, early literacy and brain development. It builds the capacity of on-reserve and urban Aboriginal educators and provides a model for developing strong partnerships between First Nations and service providers. Visit Website | |
| Independent Media Producers Network Society | MediaNet’s Filmmaking Camp for Indigenous youth | 2019 | Grantee | Arts & Culture | MediaNet is seeking funding for a film making camp for fifteen Indigenous youth, to take place in summer 2020. Youth will be mentored by local Indigenous filmmakers through partnerships with Pacific Peoples Partnership and Foundation, an organization focused on the recovery of ecosystems and Indigenous food sources. Films made by youth will focus on community-based initiatives highlighting the environment and food security. The completed films will be screened in MediaNet’s FLUX Gallery as a part of Pacific Peoples Partnership’s annual “One Wave Festival” in September 2020, alongside environmental documentaries by established Indigenous filmmakers. Visit Website | |
| Industrial Areas Foundation Canada | Consolidating Community Collaboration for Action | 2019 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | This project will catalyze early GVAT results through three main interventions: it will build capacity of core teams in member organizations, strengthen collaboration between organizations through high quality research and relationship-building, and enable a high-profile Founding Assembly to consolidate policy commitments in the organization’s priority areas of Housing Affordability and Mental Health. The Founding Assembly will demonstrate GVAT members’ support for these policy innovations and highlight linkages to climate change response and reconciliation. Through support to these three initiatives, the project will integrate and empower collaborative action for social change by engaging member organizations and attracting new membership and funding. Visit Website | |
| Inter-Cultural Association of Greater Victoria | im:print 2020 | 2019 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Belonging & Engagement | im:print is a multidisciplinary performative art presentation that weaves the personal stories of Indigenous, settler, immigrant and refugee artists. It speaks, dances and sings the complex journey of the inter-relationship to place and people. ICA will work with both local collectives and solo artists from diverse disciplines to present a poignant performative work that utilizes the innovative use of space and lighting, live music, movement and text – monologues, poems, songs and skits. This art presentation will engage, unsettle and provoke an audience into questioning its own relationship to community and the real implications of diversity, identity and inclusion. Visit Website | |
| Intrepid Theatre Company Society | Intrepid Theatre’s Capital Improvement Project 2019/2020 | 2019 | Grantee | Arts & Culture | Intrepid Theatre’s two small and mid-sized accessible venues are consistently busy and are the only performance spaces of their kind in Victoria. Over the last twelve years, both venues have evolved into increasingly state-of-the-art spaces in response to the needs of the community it serves. To package both as a completely professional space, while still responding to the Theatre’s affordable/accessible guiding principles, they require purpose-designed and engineered theatrical grid replacement with soft-goods to better serve the 500+ productions and the 50,000 audience members who rely on this space each year. Visit Website | |
| Island Community Mental Health Association | PSR Collaboration and Social Gather Place Project | 2019 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | The Mental Health & Substance Use (MHSU) Psychosocial Rehabilitation (PSR) Collaboration is a cross-sectoral initiative focused on the implementation of a multi-year “PSR Vision & Development Plan” to launch and test a new pilot Social Gathering Place (SGP) and to further strengthen PSR and SGP services across the capital region. Improved resourcing of peer support/navigation and partnerships between People with Lived Experience, family/caregiver groups, non-profit organizations, local health authorities and other stakeholders are critical to the adequate provision of recovery-oriented services and reducing isolation and increasing social connections for people living with mental health challenges in our community. Visit Website | |
| Iyengar Yoga Centre Of Victoria Society | Iyengar Yoga Centre Wellness Program | 2019 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Iyengar Yoga enhances the emotional, physical and mental health of its practitioners. The Iyengar Yoga Centre offers 45 classes per week, including two remedial classes for students with injures, chronic illnesses and disabilities, taught by 25 teachers, to 450 students. Students vary in age and ability. Iyengar Yoga relies on equipment such as bolsters and mats. The Centre’s bolsters and mats are between 10 and 20 years old and need to be replaced. New bolsters and mats will last between 10 and 20 years and will ensure the Centre will continue to deliver a safe and effective program. Visit Website | |
| Jewish Community Centre Of Victoria | Victoria International Jewish Film Festival | 2019 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | The Victoria International Jewish Film Festival presents newly made independent films from around the world that centre on themes of Jewish cultural identity and history. The festival brings together disparate audiences from the Jewish and the wider communities to learn about and reflect on the universal messages expressed in these films. The films are not religious in nature and are selected to foster cross-cultural connections. Mainly independent productions, the films are unlikely to be screened in local commercial cinemas or online. The festival is primarily delivered by a volunteer organizing committee and volunteer director. Visit Website | |
| Junior Achievement of British Columbia | JABC TechWorks Victoria | 2019 | Grantee | Economy | “TechWorks Victoria” will provide 350 local students in grades nine and ten with a full-day opportunity to explore technology-related careers. “TechWorks Victoria” is designed to inspire and motivate students to pursue subjects, such as mathematics and science, by providing a glimpse of the rewarding career opportunities in science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) fields. The morning plenary of the program focuses on engaging students with inspirational speakers and cutting-edge technology demonstrations. In the afternoon, students participate in smaller sessions facilitated by industry experts, which allows them to discover, interact and experience hands-on technology demonstrations. Visit Website | |
| Kidsport Canada | “So ALL Kids Can Play” Sport Registrations | 2019 | Grantee | Sports & Recreation | The “So ALL Kids Can Play” sport registration program provides local children in need with the opportunity to play organized sport, alongside their peers and under the supervision of qualified coaches and positive adult role models. KidSport Victoria works with over 200 local sport organizations to provide kids living in poverty the chance to get in the game, and benefit from lessons related to teamwork, work ethic, fair play and leadership. Additionally, involving kids in sport and physical activity is a powerful preventative measure to combat isolation and current trends of inactivity, childhood obesity and long-term health consequences. Visit Website | |
| LDABC The Learning Curve Society | Parent & Child Care Provider Support Program | 2019 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Belonging & Engagement | LDABC The Learning Curve provides a range of flexible support options for families with children experiencing learning and behavior challenges that are negatively impacting their emotional wellbeing, their learning, and/or overall development and relationships. The programming, including workshop series, support groups and one-on-one consultations, is developmentally sound, strength based and designed to reduce frustration and stress and increase resilience so that challenges and barriers can be overcome. Parents and caregivers gain skills and confidence in their abilities to support their children. When parents understand and come alongside their child, children gain confidence and develop the capacity to reach their potential. Visit Website | |
| Leadership Victoria Society | Leadership Victoria Community Leadership Development Program | 2019 | Grantee | Learning | The Community Leadership Development Program is Leadership Victoria’s flagship program, developing over 350 community leaders since 2001. This program includes online learning, in-person seminars and experiential learning through the delivery of Community Action Projects. The Community Action Projects involve the learners working in teams to deliver projects with a key community non-profit partner. The 2019-20 cohort will partner with KidCareCanada for its Community Action Projects. The Community Action Projects will deliver hands-on learning for participants and work to achieve KidCareCanada’s mission to empower all new parents to raise their children to be socially and emotionally healthy. Visit Website | |
| Lester B. Pearson College of The Pacific and United World Colleges (Canada) Inc. – College Du Pacifique Lester B. Pearson Et Colleges Du Monde Uni (Canada) Inc. | Renewing Victoria House – Student Residence Renovation | 2019 | Grantee | Learning | When Pearson College United World Colleges was built in 1974, one of the student residences was named “Victoria House” in recognition of the generous local donations received to fund the project. Now up for a major renovation, the College is reaching out to renew support from the local community to improve the comfort and safety of the forty students who live in this house each year, for the next 45-years and beyond. Students come from different political, socio-economic, religious, cultural and ideological perspectives. Through this challenging, yet inspiring living model, the students learn the cornerstone of world peace: tolerance. Visit Website | |
| M’akola Housing Society | Change-Makers Gathering 2020 | 2019 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | M’akola is launching 2020 National Indigenous People’s Week with the Elder’s teaching “If you set the table, the lesson will come.” An Indigenous-inspired feast will be served at Bear Mountain with a showcase of Indigenous art and traditional drumming, singing and dancing. We are bringing Indigenous and non-Indigenous change-makers in our region together with families to share a meal and conversation. The community change-makers at the event will include Chiefs, Elders, Indigenous role models, politicians, business executives, non-profit sector leaders, influential community members and the public. We are working with all ten First Nations in Greater Victoria for the event. Visit Website | |
| March Of Dimes Canada | After Stroke Victoria | 2019 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | The “After Stroke Victoria” program will benefit stroke survivors and caregivers, directly supporting individuals in their transition from hospital to community and empowering them to self-manage their recovery and get back to life after a stroke. March of Dimes Canada will lead this program in collaboration with Victoria Disability Resource Centre, VIHA staff and Stroke Recovery Association of BC, to provide community navigation services (action-planning, information, referral and coaching) and ongoing peer support services. This will result in increased opportunities for stroke survivors to get involved in community, neighbourhood activities, foster peer connectedness and improve their quality of life. Visit Website | |
| Mennonite Central Committee (MCC) British Columbia | New Foundations | 2019 | Grantee | Getting Started in our Community | Funding would support one year of the “New Foundations Victoria Asset Development Account” (ADA) program, which is offered to ten single-parent newcomers living in the Greater Victoria region. Participants will meet bi-weekly to learn financial literacy skills within a community building environment to help them thrive in Canada. Workshops are taught by local experts using a participatory learning approach. Job readiness skills and life skills, including cooking healthy meals together, are also program components. At the end of the program there is a graduation where participants who have met their savings goals will have their funds matched 2:1. Visit Website | |
| Mental Health Recovery Partners Society – South Vancouver Island | Reaching Recovery | 2019 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Funding would support one year of the “New Foundations Victoria Asset Development Account” (ADA) program, which is offered to ten single-parent newcomers living in the Greater Victoria region. Participants will meet bi-weekly to learn financial literacy skills within a community building environment to help them thrive in Canada. Workshops are taught by local experts using a participatory learning approach. Job readiness skills and life skills, including cooking healthy meals together, are also program components. At the end of the program there is a graduation where participants who have met their savings goals will have their funds matched 2:1. Visit Website | |
| Move Adapted Fitness and Rehabilitation Society of B.C. | Supported Therapeutic Exercise Program (STEP) | 2019 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | The “Supported Therapeutic Exercise Program” (STEP) provides supported therapeutic exercise and access to adapted equipment for low-income individuals living with disabilities. This program is customized to address the unique and complex needs of individuals with a variety of disabilities. STEP includes the development of individualized exercise programs, full access to specialized gym equipment, one-on-one therapy by a certified Kinesiologist, group exercise programs and social engagement activities. Through the STEP program, Move Adapted Fitness and Rehabilitation Society would like to expand its one-on-one athletic therapy service and group exercise programs. Visit Website | |
| Namaste Transition to Community Society | Namaste Music Program | 2019 | Grantee | Arts & Culture | Namaste Transition to Community Society is seeking funding to continue to run an innovative and inclusive music program open to all community members in the Greater Victoria area. This program has expanded from one day to two because of the great need. The program operates from 10:30 am – 11:30 am on Tuesdays and Fridays and addresses the needs of over 300-400 individuals each week who have a passion for music, performing and community building! | |
| Nanaimo Foodshare Society | Everyone At the Table | 2019 | Grantee | Learning | “Everyone At the Table” builds on the experiences from previous programs by facilitating group volunteer activities that will build employment skills, with a focus on food, consulting with volunteers about their needs as volunteers and peer supports for healthy eating, facilitating the development of a peer food advocate network and test, evaluate and redesign our tools and supports for food advocates based on their experience. Evaluation will look at the community and individual supports and barriers to be a volunteer peer food advocate to develop individual goals and activities as well as group goals and activities. | |
| Open Space Arts Society | Acting Towards: Gestures of Curatorial Responsibility and Hospitality | 2019 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Arts & Culture | Through “Acting Towards,” Open Space will explore the role of curatorial responsibility and hospitality in developing decolonial art spaces. Working collaboratively, the gallery will undertake a process of self-analysis and community engagement to make visible the biased and prejudicial aspects of the systems perpetuated in the arts, helping the Open Space community to articulate its position(s) within the broader arts and culture ecosystem and establish ethical and compassionate ways of being and working in relation. These explorations are foundational to building a program of activity, including community engagement series and exhibitions, centered around guest-host relations and gestures of hospitality. Visit Website | |
| Our Place Society | Vibrant Volunteers | 2019 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Learning | Our Place Society’s 740 volunteers have grown beyond its traditional base of core groups ensuring daily meals. A wider range of volunteers support more than 60 programs for 800 people in need daily including a hygiene station, clothing, nutrition bar, mental health counselling, dental care, job readiness mentorship, foot care, a healing circle and a community choir. Funding will provide an orientation video, operational training modules and a volunteer e-handbook to enable staff to more efficiently orient, train and engage volunteers to better serve hundreds of vulnerable and marginalized people in Victoria. Visit Website | |
| Pacific Opera Association | School Performances; “Flight of the Hummingbird” by Haida artist M.N.Yahgulanaas | 2019 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Arts & Culture | “The Flight of the Hummingbird” is a touching exploration of environmentalism and moral courage. In this exciting new opera for young audiences, the forest animals unite to save their beautiful home from a wildfire. Beyond the benefits of creating a forum for underrepresented Canadian voices and opportunities for emerging artists, school performances of “The Flight of the Hummingbird” encourage opera’s use as an educational resource, resulting in new dialogues on environmental, social, and cultural issues. Today’s youth face uncertainty defined by climate change. The hummingbird’s call to action: “do what you can” no matter how small the gesture, fosters empowerment. Visit Website | |
| Pandora Arts Collective Society | Beyond Social Isolation: Mental Wellness through Art and Community Building | 2019 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | The Pandora Arts Collective Society (PACS) provides an inclusive and welcoming space where participants become part of a vital community through both an art-as-therapy and leadership program, run by award-winning art facilitators. PACS’ participants benefit from peer to peer support and professional facilitation through staff, as well as learn from community members and guest artists. PACS’ mandate is to also have at least 50% participants as leaders on the board of directors, which provides important leadership training and capacity building for the community. PACS participates in the Fernwood Art Stroll as well as the Moss Street Paint-In. Visit Website | |
| Peers Victoria Resources Society | Breaking bread to acknowledge diversity in the sex industry | 2019 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | “Breaking Bread to Acknowledge the Diversity of the Sex Industry” is a community dinner group model that focuses on bringing together a targeted group of people in sex work including escorts/agency based, men/masculine, Indigenous women and two spirit people, and trans or non-binary individuals, to share a meal and engage with cultural leaders, educators, and health care or wellness experts. The primary benefits of the program include addressing stigma, developing community among people who share a specific experience, acknowledging the diversity of people in the sex industry, increasing cultural and wellness knowledge, and creating community partnerships. Visit Website | |
| Pender Island Child Care Society | Mentorship and Interpersonal Communication | 2019 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | Pender Island Child Care Society is seeking a communal learning experience on mentorship and interpersonal communication. The workshop will invite early years professionals of the Southern Gulf Islands and Saanich Peninsula to foster a sense of belonging by sharing common challenges, successes, stories and strategies in mentorship and interpersonal communication. Benefits will include assembling tools for personal reflection and relational growth in order to provide enhanced quality service that values and upholds the social and emotional well-being of all. Funding would support the workshop and running the weekly “Parents and Babes” program and Circle of Security Parenting Course. Visit Website | |
| Ptarmigan Music and Theatre Society | Building Healthy and Connected Communities Through the Arts | 2019 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | To address isolation of seniors on the Southern Gulf Islands, Ptarmigan and its health care partners will design and deliver high-quality mobile arts activities and projects aimed at connecting seniors with their larger communities. Ptarmigan intends to develop a Mobile Art Cart which can travel to housebound seniors and provide joyful, connecting and creative artistic play. The society will also develop accessible and intergenerational community arts projects and provide transportation to ensure seniors’ participation. Using the power of the arts, this project will create meaningful intergenerational connections, allowing isolated seniors to feel happier, healthier, engaged and connected to their community. Visit Website | |
| Raincoast Conservation Foundation | Building momentum for Southern Resident killer whale recovery | 2019 | Grantee | Environmental Sustainability | The Raincoast Conservation Foundation will work towards recovering critically endangered Southern Resident killer whales by delivering a multi-faced campaign rooted in science, legal strategies and a film documentary. Jointly, the project is designed to create enough public momentum to compel effective and immediate government action on recovery. In collaboration with our partner ENGOs, the project will work towards recovering the species through improving Chinook salmon abundance, creating sanctuaries, reducing acoustic and physical vessel disturbance, and encouraging compliance and enforcement of all implemented threat reduction measures. Our documentary will also educate, inform and engage local audiences. Visit Website | |
| Ready to Rent BC Association | Increasing Access to Housing through the RentSmart Guarantee | 2019 | Grantee | Housing | With critically low rental vacancy in the region, many low-income people struggle to find and compete for decent and affordable housing. “The RentSmart Guarantee” is an evidence-based initiative combining tenant education with a financial guarantee to increase private market rental housing access for those leaving transitional housing. Building on recent research of widespread use in the United States, the pilot is a collaboration of four local housing partners. Our goal is to cover 45 tenancies for vulnerable youth/families to find and keep housing, increase access to transitional housing spaces and increase knowledge of this approach for wider use in Canada. Visit Website | |
| Rocky Point Bird Observatory Society | Monitoring Migratory Bird Populations | 2019 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Environmental Sustainability | Rocky Point Bird Observatory volunteers and staff conduct monitoring of birds migrating through the most southerly point of Vancouver Island. Data gathered through our targeted research is used to monitor bird population trends, investigate declines and recommend actions to protect the health of ecosystems on which we all depend. Funding is requested to support the expansion of the monitoring project, improve upon the success of outreach and improve the quality of volunteer engagement. Given the alarming, large-scale decline in bird populations and the loss, fragmentation and degradation of native habitats, the need for rigorous bird monitoring programs is critical. Visit Website | |
| Saanich Volunteer Services Society | Friends Stay Healthy: Maximizing Nutrition for Better Senior Health | 2019 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Standard of Living | The “Friends Stay Healthy” Program has been designed to enhance a supportive senior social network by focusing on nutritious food services. Incorporating learnings from a 2018 pilot project, the program will broaden knowledge and access to nutrition services defined as: food education, food home delivery and community-based food resources. The aim is to reach the most vulnerable seniors with limited financial resources who are at risk of social isolation, food insecurity and hunger and compromising long-term health issues. The program builds on promoting a healthy lifestyle by linking healthy eating, social connectedness and healthy aging. Visit Website | |
| Salt Spring Island Farmland Trust Society | The Root: Salt Spring Island Farmland Trust local food centre | 2019 | Grantee | Standard of Living | The Root, located on Salt Spring Island (SSI), is in its third year of development and will include a new building, community temperature-controlled produce storage, 1000 square foot energy-efficient processing kitchen and a regenerative food landscape on-site. In this application, we are seeking funding for components of the essential integrated water system. The water system will increase the expected impact of the processing kitchen and food production, addressing the SSI water shortage and the low-flow well. The Root builds essential food security and climate action capacity in a rural setting. Visit Website | |
| Scouts Canada | 2nd Fort Victoria Scout Hall Roof Replacement | 2019 | Grantee | Learning | 2nd Fort Victoria is hoping to add ramps, an accessible washroom and improved fire escapes to the hall. The roof needs to be replaced and will be upgraded as part of this project. The benefits of the project will help the Scout group to be more available to members with access needs. Other groups in our community use the hall and the intention is that more groups will do so. There has been interest from day care providers to use the hall, but the current condition of the hall has not been adequate. |
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| Simon Fraser University | Connect & Prepare | 2019 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | Building Resilient Neighbourhoods, VictoriaReady and the SFU Centre for Dialogue are partnering to deliver “Connect & Prepare” in multi-unit buildings in Victoria as part of a larger “Hey Neighbour Collective” initiative. “Connect & Prepare” strengthens connections between neighbours and helps them become better prepared and resilient for meeting different types of challenges, stresses and emergencies. Neighbours get to know each other better while learning about short-term, acute emergencies such as earthquakes and flooding and longer-term chronic stresses such as health challenges and climate change. Neighbours will also identify their assets and skills and implement collective projects based on shared priorities. | |
| Singyourjoy Young Adult Chorus Society | SingYourJoy Westshore | 2019 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | This project will extend the successful SingYourJoy (SYJ) youth and young adult choir to Westshore communities. SYJ is the capital region’s only non-auditioned, no-fee choir specifically intended to build an accessible choral community for young adults ages 16-29. Over 20% of the capital region’s young adults live in the Westshore and cannot readily access weekly rehearsals in the central venue used by SYJ. A Westshore SYJ choral group following the same principles of accessibility and community-building will build belonging and connection for this transient demographic. They will perform in Westshore communities and collaborate with local partners including SYJ in Victoria. Visit Website | |
| Society for Kids at Tennis | Free Tennis Lessons for Disadvantaged Kids | 2019 | Grantee | Sports & Recreation | Over the past five years, KATS has provided free tennis lessons to over 10,000 children in Victoria. These kids face challenges created by family financial circumstances or by developmental disability (Autism, Down Syndrome, Wheelchair Disabilities). We strive to offset the growing negative impacts kids face today. The shift from healthy outdoor play to sedentary and isolating “techno-play” on cell phones and computers is a real challenge. Childhood obesity, type 2 diabetes and depression are increasing dramatically. Benefits to the community include the improved physical and mental well-being of kids as well as big savings in future health care costs. Visit Website | |
| Sooke Family Resource Society | Prenatal Education and Outreach Program | 2019 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | This program provides pregnancy education, prenatal/postnatal support and outreach for Sooke to Port Renfrew through locally accessible group and individual services. The Prenatal Program participants gain prenatal/postnatal knowledge and confidence, increase protective factors for themselves and their baby, increase awareness of community resources and develop a shared sense of community. Serving 30 – 55 pregnant women a year through three – four prenatal courses and over 250 one-on-one outreach sessions, the overall goal of this program is to support the health and well-being of new babies and their families in the community. Visit Website | |
| Sooke Region Communities Health Network Cooperative | Sooke Region Mental Health and Addictions Services Inventory | 2019 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | In 2018, Island Health highlighted that Sooke residents’ mental health needs were relatively higher compared to the rest of Vancouver Island, especially regarding depression. SRCHN will consult with mental health agencies serving the Sooke region, including First Nations, clients, their families and caregivers. SRCHN will document needs, gaps in service, and explore new ideas with interviewees. Once data is collected, it will be analyzed and presented in a report documenting the mental health and addictions services inventory to highlight the needs and gaps that need to be addressed. The report will be shared publicly and with relevant authorities. Visit Website | |
| St. Andrew’s Presbyterian Church | Stained Glass Emergency Restoration (Dunsmuir Windows) | 2019 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Arts & Culture | St. Andrew’s Presbyterian Church has been upgrading its building on Douglas and Broughton, which is a designated heritage site. The structure was upgraded (seismic and roof trusses) and over the past five years the restoration of the roof was completed with the support from the Victoria Heritage Trust. With the integrity of the building restored, an evaluation determined that the Dunsmuir Windows needed to be re-leaded and the stained-glass windows refurbished. The Dunsmuir Windows were installed in 1889 and the cleaning will enhance the beauty of the images and colours for all residents and visitors to the region. Visit Website | |
| St. Barnabas Anglican Church | Early Music Choral Internship Expansion | 2019 | Grantee | Arts & Culture | The St. Barnabas Performance Choir has long been a center for Early Music in Victoria. The choir currently has a paid internship program for four students of music and voice. The proposal is to augment this choral internship program by increasing the number of annual performances by 20 each year. This increase in performances will expand both the monetary and educational support the choir provides for those students selected to participate. It will also increase accessibility to Early Music for Victoria audiences. This proposal specifies a one-time grant which will support the expanded internship program for 2 full seasons. Visit Website | |
| Stigma-Free Society (Formerly Bipolar Disorder Society of British Columbia | Stigma-Free Zone School Program & Children’s Mental Health Program | 2019 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | The Stigma-Free Zone School Program (Grades 7-12) is a community-based participatory program that aims to promote mental health and reduce stigma of all kinds. The program educates and supports youth dealing with stigma and/or mental health issues and educates youth to be respectful and non-judgmental toward others. The Children’s Mental Health Program (Grades 4-6) strengthens resiliency in school children through increased awareness of their mental health. Students learn to express how they are feeling with regards to their mental health, are taught the importance of a healthy lifestyle and, above all, learn the value in reaching out for help. Visit Website | |
| The Anawim Companions Society | Anawim House Day Program | 2019 | Grantee | Standard of Living | The Anawim House day program is provided by the Anawim Companions Society which also provides a 7-bed recovery home for men. The day program provides essential services to Victoria’s homeless community, including nutritious meals, showers, laundry facilities and referrals to community partners for counselling, addiction treatment, health care, employment, housing and other individual needs. Anawim House provides a safe environment where individuals can experience a sense of belonging and companionship, which are now recognized as essential to the psychosocial well-being of those with mental health issues or those wishing to recover from addiction. Visit Website | |
| The Bateman Foundation | Cultivating Greater Victoria’s Naturehood | 2019 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Arts & Culture | “Cultivating Greater Victoria’s Naturehood” is a year-long program to promote accessibility and engagement to the value of the natural environment within the urban setting of Greater Victoria, using a combination of exhibits, public lectures, nature-based activities, and art programs. The project is targeted to both residents and visitors to Greater Victoria, with a specific focus on residents with mental or general health difficulties, immigrant families, and families with limited incomes. The program is supported by over 15 local non-profits with a mandate to promote nature as a way to build environmental consciousness, mindfulness and physical wellness in an urban setting. Visit Website | |
| The Cridge Centre For the Family | Battered Brains: Intimate Partner Violence and Brain Injury | 2019 | Grantee | Safety | The Cridge Centre has led Victoria for 146 years in supporting vulnerable populations, with 27 years of service to brain injury survivors and women impacted by intimate partner violence (IPV). Recently research has revealed the intersection of these populations: up to 90% of women impacted by IPV also sustain brain injuries (BI). Currently, there are no services for this vulnerable population in this region, commonly resulting in addiction, homelessness, incarceration and children placed in foster care. Providing direct supports and advocacy services for these women will dramatically impact these families, giving them a higher likelihood of a successful future. Visit Website | |
| The John Howard Society of Victoria | School-Based Restorative Justice | 2019 | Grantee | Safety | The John Howard Society will launch a “School-Based Restorative Justice” program, available to select middle and high schools in the Greater Victoria area. This program is an innovative response to student incidents and will encourage students to take responsibility for their actions and work collaboratively to repair the harms their behaviours have caused. Research has shown that the use of Restorative Justice in schools helps students develop empathy and conflict resolution skills and reduces bullying and violence, resulting in safer schools and local communities. Funding is requested to support this program in six schools in its pilot year. Visit Website | |
| The Mustard Seed Street Church | Food Rescue Program Composter Acquisition | 2019 | Grantee | Environmental Sustainability | The objective of this project is the purchase, installation, operation, and management of a commercial composter for use at the Mustard Seed’s Food Rescue Distribution Centre. The acquisition of such a device will not only help to reduce our rates of waste and decrease our carbon footprint but will also provide opportunities for education and training related to sustainable waste management, as well as for the sale/donation/use of Grade-A produced compost. The composter we plan on acquiring is the Joracan 20T, a commercial unit manufactured and produced in Canada, capable of producing 6400kgs of compost per year. Visit Website | |
| The Salvation Army Victoria Addictions and Rehabilitation Centre | The Salvation Army dormitory renovation proposal for additional housing. | 2019 | Grantee | Housing | The Salvation Army Addiction & Rehabilitation Centre (ARC) has been faithfully serving the region’s marginalized population since 1897. Due to the current housing crisis, rocketing number of homeless and the ARC’s oversubscribed program, it is critical that the ARC creates more available spaces to shelter, protect and support those transitioning from homelessness, poverty and addiction. Funding would support the reconfiguration of an underutilized space within the ARC that will provide comfortable accommodation for an additional 12 beds, which translates to 4,380 sleeps annually. Visit Website | |
| The Sooke Philharmonic Society | Community Music Program | 2019 | Grantee | Arts & Culture | This community orchestra, comprised of over 60 musicians and a 40-voice chorus, has a long-standing presence in Sooke and the Westshore. Funding would support two main programs: the Community Music Program and the Sooke Harbour Chamber Workshop. These programs provide affordable and accessible high-quality classical music performances, engage members of the community of all ages in developing and sustaining the performances, and mentor young performers, encouraging them to continue with their musical studies. In the coming year, the orchestra will add two inclusive open rehearsals that are designed to introduce young musicians to the upcoming program. Visit Website | |
| The Story Theatre Productions Society | The Very First Circus – Participatory Theatre for Preschoolers! | 2019 | Grantee | Arts & Culture | Story Theatre has developed “The Very First Circus” production for a preschooler audience, rooted in the idea that movement and play are essential for learning. The production is built to tour and play in small spaces including day cares, parks and libraries, offering youth, families and educators a free artistic experience through sixteen performance across the region. This is a flexible, ready-made production that allows for creative-placemaking. Future collaborations with the City of Victoria, Greater Victoria Public Library, Vancouver Island Regional Library and the Royal BC Museum are anticipated. Visit Website | |
| Umbrella Society for Addictions and Mental Health | Youth Outreach | 2019 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Umbrella Society currently provides part-time support and outreach services to youth under the age of 24. Funding would increase the capacity of the youth support worker to full-time, allowing Umbrella Society to help more youth. Because Umbrella Society is strategically located at Victoria General Hospital and the Foundry downtown, it can connect with youth struggling with mental health and substance use issues, who feel isolated and alone. By expanding its current services, Umbrella Society will provide more support, connection and hope as the youth outreach worker builds healthy, trusting relationships with the growing number of youth in need. Visit Website | |
| Vancouver Island Counselling Centre For Immigrants and Refugees Association (VICCIR) | Mental Health Counselling for Immigrants and Refugees | 2019 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | VICCIR provides mental health counselling to refugees and immigrants delivered by qualified and experienced registered clinical counsellors who receive ongoing supervision and training. This project will increase the number of clients able to access VICCIR’s services in response to growing demand. Refugees and immigrants of all ages, genders and ethnicities will receive high-quality therapy without encountering obstacles which often prevent access to much-needed mental health support such as cost and long waiting lists. The benefit will be felt by the whole community, as adults, youth and children are able to establish themselves more quickly into our multicultural society. Visit Website | |
| Victoria Association for Community Living | Own Your Voice: An Inclusive Performance Arts Initiative | 2019 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Belonging & Engagement | Using inclusive performance arts as a platform for self-expression and co-creation, Community Living Victoria will provide youth with intellectual disabilities and/or autism opportunities to interact in new ways with others, gain self-confidence, learn how their bodies work and learn to communicate using movement and facial expression. Youth with limited communication, social and self-regulation skills will explore new ways to express themselves amongst friends and family while in an emotionally and physically safe space. Youth will gain experience being creative, flexible and applying social thinking, which in-turn will increase their confidence and capacity to navigate the complexities of teenage social engagement. Visit Website | |
| Victoria Baroque Music Society | Baroque, music, concerts and outreach | 2019 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Arts & Culture | The project will increase both the artistic and administrative capacity of the Victoria Baroque Music Society to achieve an enriched and expanded program of baroque music in Victoria and the surrounding area. The benefits that will accrue from this program and administrative development will be the expansion of audiences and greater appreciation in this community of baroque music and its remarkable quality, as well as its important place in western musical culture. A further important development will be the improved training of emerging young musicians. Visit Website | |
| Victoria Community Food Hub Society | Good Food Collective Impact Strategy | 2019 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | The Good Food Network works together towards a vision of healthy local food for everyone in the capital region. Fruits of collaboration to date include gardens and farm programs in schools increasing food literacy, supporting the Food Share Network to increase good food access and building capacity with local farms and food providers growing the local economy. Funding will strengthen coordinated leadership of these efforts, formalize a measurement framework and develop key network large-scale collaboration priorities from the 2018 Collaboration Outcomes Map, including an integrated food hub, farmland access policy and the Indigenous food sovereignty ITEL initiative. | |
| Victoria Conservatory of Music | Getting Started: Early Childhood Music Education Outreach | 2019 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Getting Started in our Community | The Victoria Conservatory of Music’s “Getting Started: Early Childhood Music Education Outreach” initiative provides access to music education free of charge for young children (infants to five years old) and their parent(s) through childcare centres and preschools. The initiative focuses on centres that serve marginalized communities, including Aboriginal peoples, refugees, teenage mothers and military families. Early education in music has benefits that transcend the musical domain and no child should be denied access to these benefits on the rationale of financial need. This specialized music outreach initiative for young children is the foundation for future cognitive and emotional health. Visit Website | |
| Victoria Cool Aid Society | Belonging & Engagement: Enhancement of Urban Indigenous Home & Health | 2019 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Belonging & Engagement | Victoria Cool Aid Society learned the value of cultural programming for Indigenous clients during a two-year pilot with the Aboriginal Coalition to End Homelessness. During the pilot, nearly 20 Indigenous tenants who had been chronically homeless were successfully housed, in large part thanks to the cultural activities which were new to Cool Aid. As a result of this success and on the advice of the recently hired Indigenous Cultural Advisor, Cool Aid is expanding Indigenous cultural activities for over 500 clients, including Sweat Lodges, Talking Circles, Lifeskills Group and Nature Walks, to better support Indigenous clients. Visit Website | |
| Victoria Epilepsy and Parkinson’s Centre Society | 1-on-1 Epilepsy Consults | 2019 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Funding would deliver 1-on-1 epilepsy consults to 160 people with epilepsy and their families. These flexible consults offer personalized seizure education and safety planning, epilepsy self-management strategies and counselling to people struggling with a chronic seizure disorder that plays havoc in every area of their lives. Clients range from infants to seniors suffering from one of the over 30 seizure types. Consults guide new and returning clients through diagnosis and life transitions with evidence-based strategies to foster self-sufficiency and resiliency. This program promotes independence and empowers people with epilepsy to thrive in the community. Visit Website | |
| Victoria Immigrant and Refugee Centre Society | Welcome Gardens! 2019 | 2019 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Arts & Culture | “Welcome Gardens!” is the only project of its kind in BC addressing food security for newcomer seniors and other newcomers. It is a unique project that combines food production and social connection objectives to directly address food security. The program connects seniors (50+) and newcomers (immigrants and refugees) together to grow food in shared household gardens as well as exchange horticultural knowledge and food culture. Its 130 participants from 16 countries range in age from 10 to 76 years old. Participants will receive resources to prepare gardens, grow food, learn through horticultural or food production workshops and make friends. Visit Website | |
| Victoria Independent Film & Video Festival | Victoria Film Festival’s 2020 Art Exhibition | 2019 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Arts & Culture | Victoria Film Festival’s (VFF) 2020 Art Exhibition is a free, public art program presenting original media art installations as well as Canadian and international curated media artworks. Working with a local Victorian emerging artist-curator, VFF will bring to life in unique ways the work of Indigenous, Canadian and International independent media artists, celebrating the artworks, artists and their impact on the community. The Victoria Arts Council and outdoor pop-up locations throughout Victoria will serve as the exhibition’s free public venues, engaging community participants in the activation of Victoria’s city spaces by recontextualizing films in unique, odd or uncanny installations. Visit Website | |
| Victoria Integration Society | Strategic Leadership in Adapted Sport and Physical Activity: Phase 2 | 2019 | Grantee | Sports & Recreation | OneAbility is a collaborative of community partners that aims to provide leadership to enhance the adapted sport and physical activity landscape by increasing collaboration and building on shared strengths. Only 3% of people with disabilities participate in moderate physical activity and organized sport, compared to 30% of their non-disabled peers. Employing a collective impact model, OneAbility will undertake a formal strategic planning process to further strengthen the foundation of the Collective and its existing programs to achieve maximum impact on participation rates for people across the age and disability spectrum in the Greater Victoria region. Visit Website | |
| Victoria Integration Society | Leisure Assistance Program: Combating Isolation for Persons with Disabilities | 2019 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | People with Disabilities, particularly invisible disabilities and Mental Health Illness are experiencing social loneliness and isolation at a rate of 50% more than their non-disabled peers. RIV’s Leisure Assistance Program matches volunteers 1:1 to a person with a disability to combat the consequences of social isolation through active living pursuits. The incidence of disability is on the rise, projected to be 1 in 5 by 2036 (Rick Hansen Foundation, 2019) and community needs are changing. Funding is requested to expand on this successful service by develop strategic partnerships with like-minded volunteer services to maximize impact on the community. Visit Website | |
| Victoria Literacy Connection Society | Noisy Kids Reading Club Continuation and Reading Partners Expansion | 2019 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Learning | Using existing and proven models, Victoria Literacy Connection Society (VCL) is supporting children with literacy issues through the Noisy Kids Reading Club after-school literacy group program, continuing to collaborate with Story Studio’s narrative sessions encouraging learners to write their own books. VCL hopes to expand the newly piloted in-school Reading Partners 1:1 volunteer reading support program. The former is well-established, while the latter ran in five schools in the Greater Victoria School District in Spring 2019. Funding would go towards the expansion of Reading Partners to at least five more schools in SD61. Visit Website | |
| Victoria Philharmonic Choir Society | Haydn’s “The Creation” Choral Concert | 2019 | Grantee | Arts & Culture | Funding would support the presentation of Haydn’s “The Creation,” an important classical choral concert in Victoria. In March 2020, over 400 Greater Victoria patrons will enjoy a high-quality performance of this major classical work featuring 75 voices, professional orchestra and internationally notable soloists. Benefits to the health and well-being of choristers, audience members, musicians and volunteers are expected, promoting a sense of belonging and community to over 500 people. The Victoria Philharmonic Choir has become a vital part of the region’s musical culture and this concert fits perfectly with the choir’s vision and mandate. Visit Website | |
| Victoria Restorative Justice Society | Improving Access to Restorative Justice: Caseworker Recruitment and Training | 2019 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | At Restorative Justice Victoria (RJV), volunteer caseworkers are facilitators and mentors for clients. Caseworkers facilitate restorative justice processes with the goal of achieving healing and closure in the aftermath of crime. For this project, RJV will recruit and train 25-30 new caseworkers by delivering two 50-hour training sessions and mentoring new caseworkers on their first few cases. This will result in a 50% increase in volunteers, meaning RJV can provide restorative justice services to a larger number of clients. These caseworkers will be trained in new evidence-based restorative justice practices and develop skills for working with more vulnerable clients. Visit Website | |
| Victoria Sexual Assault Centre Society | We Belong: Inclusion for Marginalized Survivors of Sexualized Violence | 2019 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | This project is designed to address gaps between marginalized communities, including sex worker, Trans, 2Spirit, Gender Diverse (GD), disabled, newcomer, Indigenous and racialized communities, and service providers. It will provide a support group for Trans, 2Spirit and GD survivors and build a cross-agency collaborative network to strengthen accessibility and address gaps in care through developing an internal inclusion/accessibility review. In past community consultations, the primary barrier to survivors’ healing was service providers’ inability to understand diverse contexts and intersecting oppressions. This project will improve accessibility/inclusion of support organizations, strengthen organizational partnerships and improve organizational and community relationships. Visit Website | |
| Victoria Women’s Transition House Society | Stop the Violence – Small Group Women’s Counselling with Yoga | 2019 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | STV offers a four-week, trauma-informed, closed-group counselling program for survivors of domestic abuse. Participants attend a two-hour session each week. The program will be repeated seven times between January – December 2020 and will maximize client access to counselling by alternating between daytime and evening sessions and by providing child-minding services. The program, offered with a feminist perspective, will increase organizational capacity and support more clients by addressing urgent client needs and counselling wait lists. In addition, the program offers a weekly, 90-minute, trauma-informed group yoga combining the calming and grounding effects of traditional yoga with sensitivity to client needs. Visit Website | |
| Victoria’s Quilts Canada | Quilts for People with Cancer | 2019 | Grantee | Getting Started in our Community | Victoria’s Quilts Canada, Victoria branch makes quilts for people with cancer. The Victoria branch receives many thank you notes from recipients citing what a beautiful gift the quilt is and how wonderful it is that women come together to make something the recipient loves. The volunteers state that it is very gratifying to make these quilts. The Victoria branch provides the fabrics, batting and flannelette and it fund raises to make this possible. The National Office sends requests and they are filled by the group. The funds will be used to purchase flannelette and batting to make 54 quilts. Visit Website | |
| Vox Humana Chamber Choir Society | 2019-2020 Concert Season | 2019 | Grantee | Arts & Culture | Funding will support partial operating expenses incurred between December 2019 and June 2020 for rehearsal and performance venue rental, rental and purchase of music, publicity and marketing costs and office supplies. Funding will also offset costs related to providing free tickets to persons 25 years old and under for one concert, as well as providing admission by donation for two concerts. Funding will help the organization maintain high-quality performances of standard and new choral music. Visit Website | |
| West Coast Children’s Choral Society | Victoria Children’s Choir – Prelude Choir | 2019 | Grantee | Arts & Culture | In 2016, the Victoria Children’s Choir launched the Prelude Choir, a non-auditioned ensemble for children aged seven to nine. This pilot program was so successful in its first season that it filled to capacity (25 choristers). In 2017, the VCC doubled the size of this choir, introducing 50 children in Greater Victoria to voice, sound, and music through fun and interactive group exercises and empowering their future musical pursuits. The Victoria Children’s Choir is very excited about offering this expanded program once again this season. Visit Website | |
| YMCA-YWCA Of Vancouver Island | Y-Move Physical Literacy Program | 2019 | Grantee | Sports & Recreation | The YMCA-YWCA Vancouver Island has been an important provider of sport and recreation opportunities to the Victoria community for over 100 years. Y-Move is an accessible physical literacy program for children from birth to twelve years, developed by the YMCA of Greater Vancouver in partnership with Sport for Life. The focus of this program is to develop fundamental movement skills, setting the foundation for being active for life. Y-Move will provide the foundational knowledge for staff and volunteers to enhance the quality of existing programs while helping to promote health in Greater Victoria through quality sport and recreation. Visit Website | |
| 1000×5 Children’s Book Recycling Project Society | 1000X5 Children’s Book Recycling Project Society | 2018 | Grantee | Learning | Children | 1000X5 Children’s Book Recycling Project Society supports young children and learning by providing books for babies and preschoolers. The goal is for every child to have a home library and to have those books read to them 1000 times by age five, building lifelong language, literacy and social- emotional skills. Many families, due to poverty or unfamiliarity with early reading, do not own many or any books. 10,000 families at 36 Greater Victoria elementary schools donate books. 1000 children receive three books monthly from 24 agencies (60 programs). Funding will support project leader wages and purchase of new books. Visit Website |
| Aboriginal Coalition to End Homelessness Society | Towards Culturally Supportive Housing: A Model for Indigenous Women | 2018 | Grantee | Housing | First Nations, Adults | The Aboriginal Coalition to End Homelessness will develop and manage a 21-modular housing unit in 2019. Building on the promising practice and model of the Priority One Cohort pilot, this housing unit will inform the design of future culturally supportive housing tailored to support Indigenous women Island-wide. This project addresses gaps in services for the most at-risk and vulnerable, drawing on an Indigenous worldview, values, and principles. The model will build on evidence-based learning and includes decolonized approaches to harm reduction and pathways towards healing and recovery. Visit Website |
| Alzheimer Society of B.C. | Minds in Motion | 2018 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Health & Wellness | Adults, Seniors | Minds in Motion is a fitness and social/activity program for people living with early stage dementia, and the program is intended to be enjoyed with a family member, friend or care partner. Dementia can greatly increase the risk of social isolation for people living with the disease and their care partner(s). This inclusive program helps people with dementia engage with others, re-connect with community and form friendships. The program provides exercise that is a contributing factor to maintaining a healthy brain and overall well-being, and provides access to vital information, education, referrals, resources and support. Visit Website |
| Anglican Synod of the Diocese of BC | Refugees Involved in Community | 2018 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | Adults, Newcomers | The Anglican Diocese of BC provides humanitarian assistance to refugees by welcoming them as newcomers to the region. The Diocese provides immediate support to assist these newcomers in integrating into our region, while encouraging them to become self-sufficient. Currently, over 625 volunteers work in the program and are privately sponsoring 268 refugees, with the Diocese successfully settling 159 refugees last year. Volunteers also orient the newcomers to language and settlement programs, health services, and the Canadian workplace while they emotionally and financially support them. Funding would support program staff to coordinate volunteers and provide supports and services to refugee resettlement. Visit Website |
| Art Gallery of Greater Victoria | Art and Heart of Mindfulness: Discovering the Gift of Perception | 2018 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Arts & Culture | Youth, Children | The Art and Heart of Mindfulness: Discovering the Gift of Perception empowers young learners by equipping them with a basic understanding of mindfulness as a means for self-understanding, self-reflection, and self- guidance. This workshop series will support young learners’ own ability to perceive sensory phenomena and to reflect on their perception, developing self-compassion and empathy towards others in the process. Young learners (ages 6-12) will discover local and international artists’ practices and artworks, while developing an understanding that art is an expression of the individual artist’s unique perception, and that they themselves are gifted with a similarly unique perspective. Visit Website |
| Arthritis Society – BC & Yukon Division | Arthritis Education Clinics with the Arthritis Symptom Checker | 2018 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Adults, Seniors | Since 1948, the Arthritis Society has been helping people with arthritis live well by providing access to information, education, and innovative solutions for disease management. Funding will support education and awareness clinics in the Capital Region, where people at risk of having arthritis will have an opportunity to discuss their symptoms with allied Healthcare Providers (HCPs) while using the newly developed Arthritis Symptom Checker. The Symptom Checker informs users about arthritis types and associated conditions. This ultimately improves diagnosis, pathways to care, and access to specialists and allied HCPs. Visit Website |
| artsREACH Society | artsREACH Workshops | 2018 | Grantee | Arts & Culture | Children | The artsREACH Society provides free workshops in visual arts, dance, and theatre in public schools that serve the highest populations of low-income families in the Capital Region. The workshops give all children the opportunity to develop life skills by exploring their potential through arts experiences. This project removes the socio-economic barriers some children face in accessing arts programming by providing 100 free workshops. Workshops are focused on increasing problem-solving skills and therefore resilience. Visit Website |
| Ballet Victoria Society | Purchasing a van to improve unique community service programs | 2018 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Belonging & Engagement | Adults, Seniors, Disabled | Ballet Victoria will purchase a 15-seat passenger van to enhance the accessibility of its community outreach programs that provide free performances and social events to seniors, low-income individuals, people with disabilities, and public school students. The van, which will be operated by volunteers, will offer personalized transport to patrons for whom taxis and public transport are impractical or inadequate. This purchase will help promote access to all Ballet Victoria performances (especially Tea for Tutu), boost public awareness, and foster belonging and wellness for vulnerable populations. Visit Website |
| Big Brothers Big Sisters of Victoria Capital Region | In School Mentoring | 2018 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Belonging & Engagement | Children | The In School Mentoring Program (ISM) was established in 1998 to meet the needs of children identified as vulnerable whose families were not well enough to self-refer or request a mentor. The program operates within seven local elementary schools and will expand to two new schools in 2019. ISM adds to preventative services in the community providing early intervention and supporting the healthy development of children. Within the program, children are matched with a mentor who visits them weekly. These mentoring relationships support social development, encourage confidence, increase resiliency and improve the academic odds for children challenged by multiple adversities. Visit Website |
| Board of Education of School District No. 61 |
Oaklands Totem/ Legacy Project | 2018 | Grantee | Learning | Children | Oaklands students, staff, parents, and community will participate in a school-wide, minds-on, hands-on, multi-grade, collaborative, and cross- curricular project that includes: 1) carving a totem under the guidance of renowned Kwagiulth/Coast Salish artist, Carey Newman, 2) integration of First Nations culture, across classwork and subject matter, and 3) documentation and assessment of the entire process, where impacts are measured and a documentary is created to inspire other schools around the city and province to host similar projects. Visit Website |
| Broadmead Care Society | Helping Seniors Remain Independent – Bus Program | 2018 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Standard of Living | Seniors | Broadmead Care’s Bus Program brings community-building and transportation to seniors living in Saanich and on the Peninsula. Working within the Better at Home Program that is delivered collaboratively with Beacon Community Services and Saanich Volunteer Services Society (SVSS), the Bus Program started in November 2017 to fill a growing demand for transportation for seniors to buy groceries, fill prescriptions, and shop for items like clothing. Broadmead Care provides the vehicle and support staff, while its two community partners provide the volunteers and clients. This program subsidizes seniors’ transportation costs and addresses social isolation experienced by many of the participating seniors. Visit Website |
| Burnside Gorge Community Association | Youth Self Sufficiency | 2018 | Grantee | Getting Started in our Community | Youth | The Youth Self Sufficiency (YSS) program supports youth who are in foster care, on Youth Agreements, or without supports as they transition into adulthood. Working with youth aged 17-19 for up to three years, YSS takes an asset-based approach offering programming in the following areas: housing, employment, education, relationship and trust building, life skills, identity, and emotional well-being. The program also includes an outreach component for youth who are unable to participate due to mental health or other barriers. These youth will have the consistent support of an advisor as they stabilize and develop program readiness. Visit Website |
| C O F C Community Options for Children and Families Society | My Spring/Summer, My Community | 2018 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | Children, Youth, Disabled | Each year, Community Options provides up to 70 families with referrals, caregiver matching, and financial support to ensure that their children and youth with disabilities are included in community activities during spring and summer breaks from school. Funding would assist families in accessing community programs such as summer camps, as well as connect children and youth with caregivers for one on one support. The goals of the program are to maximize community inclusion, provide opportunities for youth and children to gain skills in sport, recreation and arts, and provide relief to families who need financial assistance for these programs. Visit Website |
| Canadian Light Music Society | The Palm Court Light Orchestra 2018/19 Season | 2018 | Grantee | Arts & Culture | Adults, Youth | Funding would support the society’s annual orchestral program, which has been in place since 1983. The organization continues to be committed to community building by presenting affordable, safe and convenient performances particularly suited to a senior audience. Three concerts will be presented at the Charlie White Theatre in Sidney and the Dave Dunnet Community Theatre in Oak Bay. This year includes a special collaboration with the performing arts department at Oak Bay High School with the goal to provide young solo artists the opportunity to perform with a professional orchestra and incorporate youth into its performances. Visit Website |
| Canadian Red Cross Society | Not One More Day in Hospital: HELP Plus across Victoria | 2018 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Seniors | This project will fund the purchase of 22 items of advanced home care equipment for loan to Victoria seniors, many of whom are awaiting discharge from hospital, either for free or by donation. With as little as 24 hours notice, HELP-Plus equipment is delivered and installed in the home by Red Cross technicians, allowing families up to six-months to acquire their own equipment for the long-term care of a senior. The equipment includes air mattress overlays for bedsore prevention, patient lifts, and slings. These items are essential for the safe transfer of seniors who cannot stand or walk without assistance. Visit Website |
| Capital City Volunteers Services Association | Neighbour to Neighbour | 2018 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Adults, Seniors | Funding would aid the creation of a self-sustaining volunteer network of older adult residents in four condo buildings in Humboldt Valley to support fellow senior residents in need of additional health and mobility supports. This project will assess the readiness of and train building residents to volunteer as part of the network. An overarching goal of the project is to develop this as a model that could be replicated in other neighbourhoods in the region. Visit Website |
| Capital Regional District | Connect and Prepare | 2018 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | Adults | Building Resilient Neighbourhoods, Victoria Ready, and Capital Region Housing Corporation (CRHC) are partnering to deliver the Connect & Prepare program in multi-unit buildings and complexes. Connect & Prepare strengthens connections between neighbours and helps them become better prepared and resilient together to meet different types of challenges, stresses and emergencies. Neighbours get to know each other better while learning about short-term acute emergencies (e.g. earthquakes and flooding) and longer-term chronic stresses (e.g. health challenges and climate change), identifying their assets and skills, and implementing collective projects based on shared priorities. Visit Website |
| Centennial United Church | Centennial United Church Cupola | 2018 | Grantee | Arts & Culture | Adults | Funding would support the maintenance of the Church Cupola, restoring and painting it in order to maintain the overall integrity of this historic building. This project is a preventative step, as the proposed work on the Cupola would guard against moisture seepage into, and water damage of, the roof structure, sanctuary ceiling, and interior walls. |
| Cowichan Therapeutic Riding Association | Stable Management Vocational Development Program Expansion: Tack Store Training Integration | 2018 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Belonging & Engagement | Adults, Disabled | This project will expand the Cowichan Therapeutic Riding Association’s (CTRA) Stable Management Vocational Development (SMVD) program into our award-winning social enterprise (the Jane James Used Tack Shop), creating additional opportunities for job training and volunteerism for adults with developmental disabilities. The SMVD program provides vocational training for persons with disabilities within the inclusive/adapted environment of CTRA’s therapeutic stable yard. This project would offer progressive or alternative opportunities for job-skill development within the context of CTRA’s used tack store providing hands-on retail training, work experience, and volunteer opportunities for adults with developmental disabilities in this supportive retail setting. |
| Decoda Literacy Foundation, dba Decoda Literacy Solutions | Immigrant Parents As Literacy Supporters (IPALS) Victoria Program Training | 2018 | Grantee | Learning | Adults, Newcomers | This program brings the province-wide Immigrant Parents as Literacy Supporters (IPALS) training model to the Capital Region. IPALS training is for teachers, early childhood educators, tutors, and those interested in becoming tutors for newcomers. The program offers a chance for community educators, settlement organizations, and other organizations to learn effective and engaging methods of teaching, and to help recently- arrived parents become literacy supporters for their children. In addition, training aims to identify and connect educational and settlement organizations and individuals with common goals to collectively and collaboratively support space for learning and belonging for newcomer and immigrant communities. Visit Website |
| Disaster Aid Canada | Hygiene Products through established distribution channels to reach vulnerable seniors | 2018 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Adults, Seniors | Funding will support working with seniors’ facilities to provide hygiene kits to vulnerable and low-income seniors in the Capital Region. This demographic often relies on facilities to provide services and products for their health and well-being. By collaborating and connecting with existing programming for seniors aging in place, the program will be able to reach a greater number of people in a very efficient way. Some of the funds will be used to purchase specific items that are essential for the dignity of seniors. Visit Website |
| Fairfield Community Association of Victoria, dba Fairfield Gonzales Community Association |
Transgender Tipping Point | 2018 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | Youth | The Fairfield Gonzales Community Association will host two weekend-long artistic retreats for transgender youth aged 10-18, empowering trans youth to learn, grow, and socialize within their own community. This project builds on the previously successful Trans Tipping Point (TPP) – a youth writing cohort with a forthcoming published anthology – to provide youth with an intergenerational support network of trans peers and role models, and to encourage youth’s development in leadership and project management. It will culminate in a youth-created and curated exhibition at the Legacy Art Gallery in 2019. Visit Website |
| Farmlands Trust (Greater Victoria) Society | Installation of a New Fruit Orchard at Newman Farm | 2018 | Grantee | Environmental Sustainability | Adults | The Farmlands Trust (Greater Victoria) Society [FLT Society] is interested in preserving farmland and protecting local food security in the Greater Victoria region. The FLT Society plans to install a new fruit orchard at Newman Farm in Central Saanich consisting of approximately 60 fruit trees. In support of the FLT Society’s mission, this new fruit orchard will provide a sustainable food source for growing, maintaining, and donating produce to food banks, senior centers, and drop-in centers for Greater Victoria persons and families in need aiding in relieving poverty as part of the FLT Society “field to plate” initiative. Visit Website |
| Friends of the Dominion Astrophysical Observatory Society | Touching the Stars: Science Education In the Victoria CRD | 2018 | Grantee | Learning | Youth, Adults | The Touching the Stars project creates partnerships with schools to provide hands-on astronomy and science education to students throughout the Capital Region, and develops special learning events for populations of students under-represented in the sciences. The project enriches the science curriculum of area schools and seeks to 1) spark student interest in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) careers, 2) develop critical thinking skills based on the scientific method, 3) highlight local science resources and opportunities, and 4) attract diverse individuals to science education and careers. Visit Website |
| Frontier College | Literacy Catalyst | 2018 | Grantee | Learning | Youth, Adults, First Nations | Frontier College is partnering with T’Sou-ke First Nation to mentor and train a local Community Literacy Catalyst (CLC). The CLC’s role will be to support literacy and learning in the community by raising awareness, conducting outreach, working directly with people and families, and, where possible, helping community-serving organizations and services build literacy support into their program offerings. Immediate benefits to the T’Sou-ke community members will include greater learning engagement and confidence. The project is designed for sustainability, with the long- term goal of increasing high school graduation rates and improving individual and community well-being. Visit Website |
| Galiano Club | Building Community One Meal at a Time | 2018 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | Adults | Since 2008, the Galiano Community Food Program has grown steadily and includes lunches, dinners, monthly games nights, the production of soups and meals for sale, workshops, garlic and berry co-ops, school initiatives, and a Community Greenhouse. Additionally, community-wide potluck dinners such as the Nettlefest, Community Picnic, and Winter Solstice Dinner continue to be offered. The organization now reaches almost 60% of the residents over the course of a year. Building on past successes, funding will support several new pilots, including a quiet games night, new specialized recipes for people with chronic diseases, and reusable/returnable containers for soups and meals. Visit Website |
| Galiano Health Care Society | Reaching Out – Connecting, Supporting and Building Community | 2018 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Adults | The Reaching Out Project is another step on the determined path of the Galiano Health Care Society to improve Mental Health Services on Galiano Island for all residents who find themselves in need. These funds will ensure the organization can develop and equip a space within the health centre that is private, soundproof, has a private entrance/exit, and is equipped with the technology for Telehealth to access distance services not readily available on our small rural island. The current waiting list for BC Mental Health and Substance Use counselling on Galiano is 18 months, making this project an essential one. Visit Website |
| Galiano Lions Park Society | Resurface and improve Galiano Lions’ asphalt track/walk | 2018 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Adults, Youth, Children, Seniors | The Galiano Lions Park Society created a quarter-mile asphalt track ten years ago for the community, where youngsters learn to cycle and in-line skate, and which seniors use extensively for cardio/health maintenance. Dog owners also use the area in the early and late hours to exercise their pets in the grass quadrangle that is also the Fred Robson baseball park and bleachers. The area is also used for annual festivals and fundraisers. Funding would support the replacement of the asphalt track and walkway, which has deteriorated. This is an important community infrastructure project on a remote gulf island. |
| Georgia Strait Alliance | Protecting Marine Species at Risk in Greater Victoria | 2018 | Grantee | Environmental Sustainability | Adults | The continued losses suffered by the Southern Resident killer whale population, whose critical habitat includes the waters of Greater Victoria, necessitate urgent action for their recovery by governments, communities and citizens alike. Georgia Strait Alliance’s government relations and collaborative work on orca recovery, wild salmon and marine protected areas, along with coordinated public education and mobilization, are essential for saving this umbrella species and its habitat and protecting all 118 of the marine species at risk in Greater Victoria. The organization has doubled the resources committed to this project to ensure its success. Visit Website |
| Greater Victoria Coalition to End Homelessness Society | Peer Housing Support Project | 2018 | Grantee | Housing | Adults | The Peer Housing Support Project (PHSP) is a community-driven solution to ending cyclical homelessness. This need was identified through consultation with people with lived experience of homelessness. The PHSP fills gaps in the system of support for people transitioning from homelessness. The project brings together, in an equitable relationship, experiential peer support staff with peers referred by partnering agencies (Our Place Society & Pacifica Housing). Mutual benefits of the peer/supporter relationship are a sense of well-being and belonging as well as skill development for both parties, which results in peers remaining successfully housed. Visit Website |
| Greater Victoria Coalition to End Homelessness Society | Phase 2: Building on Addressing Youth Homelessness Through Prevention | 2018 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | Adults, Youth | Funding will support the implementation of a collective response to end and prevent youth homelessness through the Greater Victoria Coalition to End Homelessness Youth Task Force. To support both a systems and grassroots community response, the project will broadly engage stakeholders (not-for-profit service providers, government, funders, corporate sector), youth with lived experience, and the public. The relationship-building and partnership development between stakeholders will support a coordinated comprehensive response to youth experiencing homelessness, while the youth-based participatory action research project will facilitate consultation, understanding and inclusion through youth- driven public awareness and engagement activities. Visit Website |
| Greater Victoria Eldercare Foundation | Peninsula ElderConnect | 2018 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Seniors | Peninsula ElderConnect will engage local seniors to highlight resources that assist Peninsula seniors and their families in connecting to local supports, both on-line and face-to-face, with help from their peers. The Peninsula ElderConnect portal will, in the future, be linked to the ElderConnect Smart Hub, which will provide access to provincial, federal and global resources for seniors and their families. This grant will help create the Peninsula platform and create three toolkits for Community Celebrations: Embrace Aging, Valued Elder Recognition Awards and Cedric Literary Awards. These toolkits will be available in future to other ElderConnected communities. Visit Website |
| Green Teams of Canada | Greater Victoria Green Team: empowering community to care for nature | 2018 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | Adults, Youth | In 2016, Greater Victoria Green Team (GVGT) expanded its volunteer model, making it the largest environmental volunteer group in the CRD. To build upon its proven model and develop organizational sustainability, funding is requested to: develop a fundraising/business plan (fee-for service partnerships, business sponsorship, individual donation campaign); develop and implement a community and volunteer action plan (evaluation plan to determine impacts on community and researching/connecting with new demographics of people); and run 40 educational environmental volunteer activities across the Capital Region, engaging 800 volunteers including 200 youth in stewardship activities. Visit Website |
| Habitat Acquisition Trust | Conservation Connection and Land Protection Program Revitalization | 2018 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Environmental Sustainability | Adults | This project encompasses two activities. Firstly, Habitat Acquisition Trust (HAT) will convene its 2019 Conservation Connection Forum, this year focused on meaningful engagement with Indigenous communities. The forum will bring together individuals, governments, and organizations from around the region to learn, network, and collaborate in conservation efforts. Secondly, HAT will increase the sustainability and effectiveness of its Land Protection Program by analyzing and applying best practices and lessons learned; creating a legal defense strategy; and modernizing existing conservation covenants to ensure they meet current standards. HAT will also create resources that will assist other conservation organizations in doing the same. Visit Website |
| Harmony Project Society of British Columbia | Harmony Project Sooke | 2018 | Grantee | Arts & Culture | Youth | Harmony Project Sooke (HPS) wishes to improve and expand its out-of- school music education program, which provides free, professional music instruction to low-income youth in the Sooke region. All students enrolled in group classes and private lessons receive an instrument to take home. HPS builds orchestras in the community and arranges concerts and field trips. The program provides a safe haven with healthy snacks and non- musical activities. Students gain life skills such as discipline, collaboration and teamwork. As they become musically competent, students develop learning and thinking skills, progress academically, increase cultural understanding and make strong social and community connections. Visit Website |
| Home is Where We Live – LifeCycles Project Society | The Food Share Network: Final steps toward sustainability | 2018 | Grantee | Standard of Living | Adults | The Food Share Network (FSN) is a collaboration of 60 member agencies working towards a food secure Capital Region. Through its member agencies, the FSN helps facilitate the distribution of over one million pounds of non-perishable and fresh food to its members to reach an estimated 35,000 people who are food insecure. Funding will support the continued development of the FSN’s governance and strategy to grow its impact on reducing hunger in our region. Visit Website |
| Home is Where We Live – LifeCycles Project Society | Growing Schools: Outdoor Garden Classrooms as Spaces of Transformation | 2018 | Grantee | Learning | Adults, Youth, Children | LifeCycles will work with four schools in the region to animate on-site food gardens as integrated learning grounds. In each school, our staff will function like school librarians, curating biodiverse outdoor learning gardens as spaces of inquiry and growth. We will host classroom groups, meet with teachers to orchestrate lesson planning, provide ongoing garden care and facilitate student leadership in each space. In each school we will host in- depth professional development sessions for teachers across the region and distribute high quality garden resources and lesson plans to support teacher learning and student inquiry. Visit Website |
| Hulitan Family and Community Services Society | Fostering Inclusion, Communication and Relationships: Pauquachin, Songhees and Tseycum Nations | 2018 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | First Nations, Children | Hulitan’s highly acclaimed program “Journeys of the Heart” uses sign- enhanced-language in its culturally-based programs in community. In this project, sign-enhanced-language training will be implemented in early years programs at Pauquachin, Songhees and Tseycum First Nations. This project will support children’s learning, communication skills, early literacy, and brain development, building capacity of early childhood professionals on-reserves and providing a model for developing strong partnerships with non-reserve service providers in the future. Led by three First Nations and the South Island Aboriginal Local Advisory Council (LAC), Hulitan will further relationships between First Nations and service providers while promoting early childhood development on-reserves. Visit Website |
| InspireHealth Society | Partnering for Health | 2018 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Adults, Youth | InspireHealth’s “Partnering for Health” program will equip over 500 young adults and adults with cancer to be partners in their own healing. Through unique and individualized cancer education programs and support services in the areas of exercise, nutrition, stress management, and self-care, participants learn how to promote their recovery. They will improve quality of life, feel empowered in their own cancer experiences and connect to others having similar experiences. InspireHealth’s programs are currently offered at no cost thanks to generous community support. Funding is requested to sustain these programs being offered free of charge to cancer patients and their families. |
| Inter-Cultural Association of Greater Victoria | im:print | 2018 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Belonging & Engagement | First Nations, Newcomers, Adults | im:print is an hour long multidisciplinary performative art presentation that weaves the personal stories of Indigenous, settler, immigrant and refugee artists. It speaks, dances and sings the complex journey of our inter- relationship to place and people. ICA will work with both local collectives and solo artists from diverse disciplines to present a poignant performative work that utilizes the innovative use of space and lighting, live music, movement and text – monologues, poems, songs, and skits – to engage, “unsettle” and provoke an audience into questioning its own relationship to community and the real implications of diversity and inclusion. Visit Website |
| International Institute For Child Rights And Development | PlayScope: Child-centred Learning for Newcomer Families | 2018 | Grantee | Getting Started in our Community | Newcomers, Children | PlayScope taps into the unique capacities of newcomer children, especially from refugee backgrounds, to cultivate community while contributing to their own health and wellness. Facilitated by the International Institute for Child Rights and Development (IICRD) in collaboration with the Inter-Cultural Association of Greater Victoria (ICA), this project uses creative activities (games, art, nature) to build resilience, belonging, knowledge, safety and well-being, by deepening the ‘scope’ of play. Up to 75 children and families will be involved in three participatory workshops and community meals. Evidenced globally, play supports children’s development, fosters empathy, allows difficult issues to be addressed, and strengthens relationships. Visit Website |
| Island Community Mental Health Association | Psychosocial Rehabilitation (PSR) Collaboration Project | 2018 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Health & Wellness | Adults, Seniors | The Mental Health & Substance Use (MHSU) Psychosocial Rehabilitation (PSR) Collaboration is a cross-sectoral initiative focused on the development of a multi-year, comprehensive implementation plan to advance the expansion, development and improved integration of PSR services and “social gathering places” in the Capital Region. Partnerships between service users, family/caregiver groups, non-profit community organizations, our local health authority and other stakeholders are critical to the adequate provision of recovery-oriented services (employment, education, peer support, social skills, health and wellness programming, etc.) and reducing isolation and increasing social connections for people living with serious and persistent mental health challenges in our community. Visit Website |
| Island Kids Cancer Association | Care4Kids: Connections – Supporting Families of Children Affected by Cancer | 2018 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Children, Adults | The rigours of childhood cancer treatment and its after-effects can be devastating. Working with community partners, Care4Kids:Connections creates nature-based outings and other activities for children affected by cancer and their families, promoting social engagement, physical activity and fun. These activities provide a chance for families to connect with each other outside the hospital walls, strengthening family bonds and giving respite from the daily stresses of treatment. Care4Kids:Connections also helps to overcome the pervasive sense of isolation felt by children and families undergoing treatment by building strong social connections with others, a vital aspect of mental/emotional health and wellness. Visit Website |
| Island Sexual Health Society | Breaking Down Barriers: Expanding the Reach | 2018 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Youth, Seniors, Adults, Disabled, First Nations | The “Breaking Down Barriers” (BDB) program acknowledges that the need for sexual health knowledge does not stop at school. Building sexual health knowledge is a lifelong process which must include all people of different ages, backgrounds, and beliefs. BDB supports LGBTQ+ communities, vulnerable youth, new parents, community support workers, people living with disabilities, families, and Indigenous communitie people who all disproportionately encounter barriers to accessing adequate healthcare and education. Our goal is to provide educational opportunities that ensure all community members have equal access to education about sexuality, reproductive health, and healthy relationships in a positive, supportive and non-judgmental learning environment. Visit Website |
| Island Women Against Violence | Croftonbrook Affordable Housing – Grey Water System | 2018 | Grantee | Housing | Adults | Island Women Against Violence (IWAV) currently operates 20 subsidized rental housing units on Salt Spring Island at Croftonbrook. In 2015, a local moratorium on new water connections was issued that continues to impact multi-family buildings. In response to the housing crisis, IWAV drilled a well and hired a hydrogeologist and engineer. They concluded there is sufficient water available for 54 new housing units provided there is a grey water system for toilet flushing. Funding would support the implementation of an up to code and effective grey water system, which would allow for the successful completion of this housing project. Visit Website |
| James Bay Health & Community Services Society (dba James Bay Community Project) | Music and Me | 2018 | Grantee | Learning | Adults, Newcomers, Children | Music and Me at the James Bay Community Project would provide 12 parent-participation music groups primarily for newcomer families and their young children (birth-5) facilitated by an experienced early childhood educator (ECE) specializing in music. Benefits to children include increased language, attention/focus, gross and fine motor skills, balance, social skills, memory and joyful self-expression. Parent-child relationships would be enhanced through musical participation. Parent support, social connections and community building are additional benefits. This program would also provide a six-session professional development training for ECE’s who might like to enhance their use of music and singing in their early childhood settings. Visit Website |
| KidCareCanada Society | “ABCs for New Parents: language development” book | 2018 | Grantee | Getting Started in our Community | Adults, Children | KIDCARECANADA has been asked by parents and health professionals to develop a second “ABCs for New Parents” book focused on language development. Parents/caregivers play a significant role in their child’s language development, but many don’t know how. “ABC’s for New Parents: language development” will provide current research, using language and images parents/caregivers can understand, and practical strategies they can implement. Whether baby is neurotypical, has a hearing barrier, learning challenge, or arrives in a multi-lingual family, parents/caregivers will find helpful and supportive suggestions to put their child on the path for effective language development and strong communication skills. |
| KidSport Canada – BC | “So ALL Kids Can Play” Sport Registrations | 2018 | Grantee | Sports & Recreation | Children | KidSport Greater Victoria’s “So ALL Kids Can Play” sport registration program annually provides 1200 to 1500 local children in need the opportunity to play organized sport, alongside peers and under the supervision of qualified coaches and positive adult role models. KidSport Victoria works with over 200 local sport organizations to provide kids living in poverty the chance to benefit from lessons related to teamwork, work ethic, fair play, and leadership. Involving kids in sport and physical activity is a powerful preventative measure to combat isolation and current trends of inactivity, childhood obesity, and related long-term health consequences. Visit Website |
| Leadership Victoria | Collaborative Leadership for Action and Impact | 2018 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | Adults | Following extensive consultation with program stakeholders, Leadership Victoria has updated and refreshed our flagship Community Leadership Development Program. In order to to deepen our impact in community engagement, the 2019 Program is directly partnering with Our Place Society for the Community Action Project practicum. Participants will investigate, develop, document, and report on an innovative transition housing model that bridges from homelessness to a permanent home for in-need community members. The updated Program will run through April 2019, and employs online learning technologies to asynchronously deliver leadership skills curriculum to 20-24 registered participants. |
| Lester B. Pearson College of the Pacific | Renewing Pearson College for the Future – Student Residence Renovation | 2018 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Learning | Youth, Adults | Each year, 200 students come from across the country and around the world to live and learn at Pearson College UWC bringing international perspectives to Greater Victoria. These funds will help renovate one aging student residence to improve students’ comfort and safety. There are 40 students to a house and four to a bedroom, all from different political, socio- economic, religious, cultural and ideological perspectives. Through this challenging yet inspiring living model, the students learn one of the College’s most important lessons and a cornerstone of world peace: tolerance. Funding will purchase beds, mattresses and covers, bookshelves, desks and dressers. Visit Website |
| Living Edge Community Church | Free, fresh food markets in the CRD | 2018 | Grantee | Standard of Living | Adults | Living Edge Community Church works collaboratively with the Food Share Network, Mustard Seed Food Bank, Salvation Army, and additional suppliers and churches to provide free, fresh food markets in the Capital Region, using a ‘neighbour helping neighbour’ module. End-users are low- income individuals and families who would benefit from fresh, nutritious food introduced to their household. Based on assessed needs, Living Edge will expand from six to nine new markets in the Capital Region in 2019. The Fresh Food Markets will work in partnership with others to provide more people with a dignified means to obtain food in their own neighbourhoods. Visit Website |
| M’akola Housing Society | Launching National Indigenous People’s Week 2019 | 2018 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | First Nations, Adults | M’akola is launching National Indigenous People’s Week with the Elder’s teaching, “If you set the table, the lesson will come.” This grant will support an Indigenous-inspired feast at Bear Mountain, with a showcase of Indigenous art and traditional drumming, singing and dancing. 1000 Indigenous and non-Indigenous change-makers in the Capital Region will come together with families to share a meal and conversation. The event will include Chiefs, Elders, Indigenous role models, politicians, business executives, non-profit sector leaders, influential community members, and the public. We are working with all ten First Nations in Greater Victoria for this event. Visit Website |
| Marie Esther Society | Room to Care | 2018 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Adults, Seniors | Mount St. Mary Hospital (MSMH) has 192 rooms for vulnerable community members (ages 46-102) who require complex care. Resident rooms and furniture are in need of renovations. Issues from large holes and gouges in the walls to bent and broken heater covers impact the health and well- being of MSMH residents, their quality of life, and their safety. Providing a room in good repair helps the 275 residents who live at MSMH each year feel respected, maintain a sense of dignity, have a sense of hope, and enjoy an enhanced quality-of-life, and will have better health outcomes. Visit Website |
| Maritime Museum of British Columbia Society | Financially accessible museum admission and education programs for marginalized groups | 2018 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Belonging & Engagement | Children, Seniors | The Maritime Museum of BC will offer free museum admission and educational programs to local organizations serving vulnerable community groups. The educational programs offered are inclusive and developed for diverse audiences, including all-ages historical walking tours of Victoria’s Inner Harbour, children’s programming for kids ages two through five, craft workshops for those aged 12+, and interactive presentations for seniors. Funds will be used to cover associated costs of these programs, ensuring the Museum is financially accessible for under-served groups. Our goal is to reinforce a sense of belonging and inspire curiosity about our coastal community through our shared cultural heritage. |
| Mayne Island Assisted Living Society | Mayne Island Seniors Lunch and Social Program | 2018 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | Seniors | Mayne Island Assisted Living Society (MIALS) and Mayne Island Health Centre Association (MIHCA) provide two healthy lunches monthly, offering social connections combined with educational talks, entertainment and outings to Island seniors. The program reaches out to at-risk and socially isolated seniors. A 2016 MIHCA health survey found that high community priorities included increased support for seniors and increased focus on mental health. The program provides information on issues relevant to seniors’ lives and health as well as of general interest. The one-year pilot successfully concludes in September 2018 and is seeking financial stability to grow and meet community needs. Visit Website |
| Mayne Island Conservancy Society | Stewards in Action | 2018 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Environmental Sustainability | Adults | This project will empower community members on Mayne Island to take responsibility for the future survival of local ecosystems and species. Mayne Island is more than 85% privately owned, and only 4.77% of natural areas are legally protected or under government stewardship. Creating a culture of conservation by working with land owners on long-term management plans through restoration activities, planting trees and shrubs, and providing advice and assistance is the only path left to successful conservation of the island. Empowering land owners is a resource efficient method for implementing long-term natural areas management and has proven successful in recent years. Visit Website |
| Mayne Island Food Bank Society | Kitchen Component of the Old School House Rejuvenation Project | 2018 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Adults, Seniors | Funding would provide equipment for a food safe kitchen in Mayne Island’s Old School House, from which the Food Bank will operate a food recovery program to sort and distribute produce and other perishable food from local businesses and farms. Recovered food will also be used in the Community Kitchen where food bank recipients and residents with limited buying power will, under the guidance of a person with Community Kitchen experience, prepare meals for later consumption. The kitchen will also be used to prepare a soup lunch for seniors and young families. Lunches will be held monthly, increasing as needed. |
| Nature Conservancy of Canada | Connecting Victorians to the Natural World Around Us | 2018 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | Adults | The Nature Conservancy of Canada (NCC) endeavors to host eight public events in the Greater Victoria area in 2019, building upon NCC’s public engagement program initiated in 2015. These events will be: NCC’s annual “Earth Day Farmed & Foraged Feast” co-hosted with Sea Cider and Toque Catering; one “Nature Talk,” a conservation speaker series featuring noteworthy speakers on salient environmental topics; two “Nature Days” events to engage young Victorians by visiting a local conservation area and learning hands-on practices; and four “Conservation Volunteer” events (some co-hosted with Green Teams) where people will participate in stewardship activities. Visit Website |
| Northwest Wildlife Preservation Society | Indoor Wildlife Workshops | 2018 | Grantee | Environmental Sustainability | Youth, Children | Northwest Wildlife Preservation Society provides free Indoor Wildlife Workshops to young people right across the Capital Region. Through the Indoor Wildlife Workshops program, Northwest Wildlife Preservation Society is able to reach young people in our community who struggle to gain access to opportunities to learn about our local environment, sustainability and wildlife. Indoor Wildlife Workshops are free and designed to teach young people about the environment and give them the skills to make a positive difference for the environment in their community. These workshops have reached nearly 25,000 participants since 2013, and will reach approximately 1000 local youth in 2019. Visit Website |
| Oak Bay Kiwanis Pavilion Foundation | Music Therapy Programming for People Living and Dying with Dementia | 2018 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Belonging & Engagement | Adults, Seniors | Funding would contribute to the support of music programming for the 122 residents of the Kiwanis Pavilion, a care facility for people with dementia. The onsite music programming includes weekly group Music Therapy sessions provided by a certified Music Therapist; Musical Memories, a one- on-one iPod program with playlists tailored to each resident; and Concerts in Care which will bring three professional music performances to residents and their families. In addition, three community outreach sessions will be hosted to teach people living at home with dementia and their caregivers how to create the Musical Memories program. Visit Website |
| Other Guys Theatre Company Society | I Walked The Line | 2018 | Grantee | Arts & Culture | Adults | In 2019, the Society will produce and premier “I Walked The Line,” a play about principles, strikes, women and solidarity. Two years ago, senior actor/playwright Allan Morgan found himself in a new role in his new job, working alongside striking Nurse Admin workers who were locked out by their Union. His observations and writings of this event led him to multiple interviews of the workers and insight into unionism, fairness and social activism. This piece will be underscored by composer and Musical Director, Tobin Stokes. The Society is dedicated to producing professional, original stories with strong musical elements. Visit Website |
| Pacific Centre Family Services Association | Community Counselling Program | 2018 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Health & Wellness | Adults, Youth | The community-based “Affordable Counselling Program” provides low-cost clinical counselling to over 350 individuals, couples, and families annually. Our trauma-informed, strength-based, client-centered, inclusive approach provides high-quality counselling to those with economic barriers. The assessment and treatment of such families prepares them to obtain and sustain the education, jobs, health services, housing, and social networks they need in order for them to fully participate in their communities. Funding will allow Pacific Centre Family Services (PCFSA) to expand its clinical internship program for graduate students, which in turn will significantly increase the number of families PCFSA currently serves in the Capital Regional. Visit Website |
| Pacific Opera Association | Coloratura Performances at Seniors Residences and Health Care Facilities | 2018 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Arts & Culture | Seniors | Pacific Opera Victoria (POV) will present the spring component of Coloratura, a series of free vocal performances in health and residential facilities for seniors with limited or no accessibility to the live performing arts, who may also experience isolation and mental and physical challenges. Each Coloratura performance features a curator and three singers from a rotating group of nine, all young pre-professionals in POV’s Artist Development Program. Coloratura enhances seniors’ mental and emotional health, while also providing valuable career development experience for young professional singers. All participants, both elders and young people, benefit from the enriched experience of intergenerational connections. Visit Website |
| Pacific Peoples’ Partnership | One Wave Gathering 2019 | 2018 | Grantee | Arts & Culture | First Nations, Adults, Youth | Since 2008, Pacific Peoples’ Partnership’s annual One Wave Gathering has celebrated the diversity of arts and culture among Indigenous peoples of Canada and the South Pacific. This award winning multifaceted program is developed in collaboration with Indigenous community leaders, Elders, artists, and activists, as well as local partners and South Pacific diaspora. One Wave aims to foster familiarity, dialogue, and ultimately respect for Indigeneity, ecological stewardship, and cultural protocols as represented by local First Nations and international Pacific Indigenous peoples. Held on Lekwungen territory, increasing public knowledge of local Indigenous teachings, cultures, history and lands is integral to the programming. Visit Website |
| Pacific Training Centre for the Blind Society | Blind People in Charge | 2018 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | Adults | The Blind People in Charge program offers a three-day-a-week program in the Capital Region for blind, deafblind and low vision adults. Blind instructors serve as role models, teaching the basics of independence and blindness-specific employment-readiness skills such as Braille, adaptive technology, cane travel, transportation, cooking, and other life skills. The program connects participants with community resources, such as housing and financial aid. The program uses an empowering style of teaching, where blind people learn to take charge of their own lives, and focuses on a positive approach to blindness. Visit Website |
| Pacifica Housing Advisory Association | Food Security Program | 2018 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Health & Wellness | Adults | Using current staff resources, Pacifica Housing would like to increase staff hours for one to three of our current housing support workers to help grow our Community Meals Program, which is currently operating at a limited capacity. Those individuals would not only engage in making meals with our Supportive Housing tenants, but would also teach proper food preparation, storage, and cooking/baking techniques. They would also explore various cultural recipes representative of Pacifica’s diverse residents and promote better nutrition. Additionally, staff would collaborate with other service organizations to provide additional training and programming to tenants. Visit Website |
| Peninsula Streams Society | Creating Young Stewards’ through Environmental Education | 2018 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Environmental Sustainability | Children | Peninsula Streams Society (PSS) delivers three annual environmental education programs to 1450+ students at over 13 Greater Victoria schools located in SD63 and SD61. These three programs, “Watershed and Salmon Life-cycle” (Grades 2-3), “Cool Carbon Connections and Nature Exploration” (Grade 5) and “Creatures of Habitat” (Grades 6-7), engage young students in hands-on, place-based learning at their schools and nearby green spaces. In this way, PSS engages students in educational experiences at least three times over the students’ elementary and middle school years. Students experientially learn concepts of stewardship, environmental sustainability and ecological restoration from local experts and community stewards. Visit Website |
| Pepaken Hautw Food Systems Education Foundation | SKALS ET TTE TENEW LTE’ Words of The Land |
2018 | Grantee | Arts & Culture | Youth, First Nations | PEPAKEN HAUTW will work with students at the tribal school in Brentwood Bay to build their capacity in the language, including learning the pronunciation of native plants, foods and medicines during workshops. The project will create an open sourced Indigenous-based curriculum, and encourage in daily lesson plans. Students will learn proper protocols for planting, care taking, restoring, and harvesting from living plants from Native plant knowledge keepers and resident Elders. Overall, students will help revitalize culture through food, medicines and native agriculture, and be empowered to better identify, harvest and eat traditional foods. Visit Website |
| PHS Community Services Society | Life skills building for youth | 2018 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | Youth | The PHS has been housing Victoria’s most vulnerable individuals since the city committed to housing Tent City residents in 2016. It was quickly apparent that a large number of our residents were under 25, and had left the child welfare system without obtaining the traditional skills and supports of their peers because of pervasive substance and mental health issues. We currently run a resident/staff kitchen within our supported housing building that feeds two meals a day to all of our residents. Using this kitchen we aim to fund a weekly cooking class for young people (aged 17- 25). Visit Website |
| Power to Be: Adventure Therapy Society | Power To Be Adaptive Recreation Program and Wilderness School | 2018 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | Children, Youth, Disabled | Power To Be’s Adaptive Recreation and Wilderness School programs impact the lives of people living with barriers by empowering them to discover their own unique abilities and improve their health through physical activity and connection with nature. Power To Be empowers people living with physical disability or illness, mental health considerations, cognitive impairment and other barriers. Adaptive Recreation provides opportunities for people ages seven and older, while Wilderness School focuses on youth in grades eight through ten. Funding will be used to increase our capacity to offer these programs. Visit Website |
| Ptarmigan Music and Theatre Society | Telling Our Stories, Building Our Community | 2018 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | Seniors | Ptarmigan envisions continuing the successful intergenerational storytelling project launched last year that addresses the serious issue of seniors’ isolation on Pender Island. This project works to unite the Pender Island community through engagement in storytelling. It will involve weekly community gatherings where seniors’ stories are told through music, film, and spoken word; a night of storytelling on stage; senior-led community arts workshops; and memoir writing. The aim of the project is to empower seniors to share their stories and life experiences, thus creating intergenerational friendships, social connection, and a sense of identity and meaning. Visit Website |
| Rainbow Express Day Care Society | Introduction of sports for health and wellness in daycare | 2018 | Grantee | Getting Started in our Community | Children | The main benefits of this Sportball include physical fitness, learning new sports, bettering gross motor skills fine motor skills, balance, coordination, concentration and independence. It is fun and non-competitive. It provides an amazing foundation for a lifetime of active living. Each week the children practice a different sport, giving kids the opportunity to practice a variety of basic sports skills, like passing, shooting & scoring, throwing, catching and swinging. The program is geared toward Rainbow Express’s preschool children. This is a fun way to learn and grow and develop all aspects of health through physical activity. |
| Royal & McPherson Theatres Society | Access to the MAC | 2018 | Grantee | Arts & Culture | Adults | This project supports not-for-profit arts organizations in the Capital Region with annual budgets under one million dollars to access the McPherson Playhouse for the development and/or production and presentation of their work. The McPherson Playhouse, with 772 seats and a professional, unionized technical crew, is often too costly for smaller organizations to use, as the economics require the sale of a substantial number of tickets per performance for feasibility. This project will allow these organizations to envision and fulfill larger creative projects in a “Class A” performance venue. This will support the development of artists and the organizations’ audiences. Visit Website |
| Salvation Army Stan Hagen Centre for Families | The Learning Centre | 2018 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | Children, Youth | The Learning Centre provides basic employment training skills to students of all ages and abilities, including computer proficiency, customer service training, WHMIS, resume writing, job search techniques, budgeting, communications skills, interview preparation, job referrals, and life skills. Enrollment is limited to 15 students. Funding will support the purchase of 15 computers needed to teach various Microsoft programs (based on Microsoft Specialist Approved courseware) and new course textbooks. Dozens of students have been accepted into further education thanks to the skills they have acquired, and many more have benefited through greater employment opportunities. This program has a waiting list each month. |
| Sierra Club of BC Foundation | Strengthening Teacher Capacity for Place-Based Outdoor Learning in the CRD | 2018 | Grantee | Learning | Adults | Sierra Club BC will build upon a successful 2017 pilot by supporting elementary teachers in three of the four School Districts in the Capital Region (SD61, 62, and 63), providing knowledge, tools and best practices for increased confidence in taking students outdoors for hands-on, place- based learning opportunities. The program will involve monthly teacher gatherings, and a new service to connect teachers with pre-screened volunteers who can accompany and provide additional oversight for students outdoors. Environmental Educators will work with 35 schools to build teacher capacity for outdoor learning by leading workshops for students, offering individualized support and mentorship to teachers. Visit Website |
| Society for Kids at Tennis | Free Tennis Lessons for Disadvantaged Kids | 2018 | Grantee | Sports & Recreation | Children, Youth | Working in conjunction with 45 community social organizations and schools, KATS will provide free tennis lessons to more than 2,000 children and youth. These children are selected by our partner organizations and come from families with chronically low income, or are children with disabilities. Benefits to the kids include learning the fundamentals of physical literacy and encouraging a life-long interest and involvement with physical activity and sports. A primary goal of our program is to encourage a shift in free-time activity from sedentary “screen time” to healthy physical activity. The benefits are physical, social and emotional. Visit Website |
| Society for the Advancement of Young Scientists | Developing FIRST Tech Challenge program in the Victoria area | 2018 | Grantee | Learning | Youth | FIRST Tech Challenge is a cost-effective robotics competition for students in grades 7-12. Studies show that students involved in FIRST Tech Challenge increase their interest in doing well in school and attending university. While the focus is on learning to build robots, students are also learning life skills such as teamwork, time management, problem solving and leadership. This project will build a strong foundation for FIRST in Victoria by providing event resources, offering honorariums for Alumni volunteers, and purchasing new equipment for teams and outreach activities. Visit Website |
| Sooke Philharmonic Society | Community Music Program | 2018 | Grantee | Arts & Culture | Youth, Adults | This community Orchestra of 60 musicians and the 40-voice Chorus have a long-standing presence in Sooke and the West Shore. Funding would support The Music Program, which provides affordable, high quality classical music performances for all ages as well as mentorship and performance opportunities to young performers, further developing their musical skills. Funding would also support The Workshop, an intense week- long session for talented amateurs to be mentored by recognized professional performers, adding to the ongoing expertise of the Orchestra. Visit Website |
| South Island Centre for Counselling and Training Society | Providing Affordable Counselling for Children and Youth: Crossing the Bridge | 2018 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Children | South Island Centre has grown to become an important community mental health resource for children and youth in Greater Victoria. The Centre has been providing professional, affordable counselling services on an income- based, sliding fee scale to those in need since 1975. In 2016, in a concerted effort to boost the mental health services available to children, youth, and their families in Victoria, and to address and alleviate the need consequential of current social issues prevalent among young people, the Centre began focusing on services and outreach to this vulnerable and neglected demographic. This all-important program will continue. Visit Website |
| Surfrider Foundation Canada Chapters | Project Zero | 2018 | Grantee | Environmental Sustainability | Adults | Funding for Project Zero will support zero-waste solutions in the Capital Regional. Project Zero will form a roundtable of stakeholders, including local government, universities and industry, to dig deeper into the root causes of waste and align local policies. Surfrider Vancouver Island will launch a pilot incubator of zero-waste solutions businesses to create new employment opportunities while eliminating waste streams. Currently, our community imports most of our products and exports most of our waste overseas. A large portion of this waste is plastics. This broken system can be addressed by turning waste into a resource while creating jobs. Visit Website |
| Swan Lake Christmas Hill Nature Sanctuary Society | IT Infrastructure Upgrade Grant Application | 2018 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Environmental Sustainability | Adults | Recently, the Swan Lake Christmas Hill Nature Sanctuary Society was hit with a cyber-attack that left the data stored on the main servers encrypted and inaccessible. During the recovery process, there were various component failures that emphasized the aging nature of the physical IT infrastructure. Funding for this project will support the purchase of new physical IT infrastructure, including a server, 12 computers and associated software and licenses. Visit Website |
| SWOVA Community Development & Research Society | R.E.A.L. (Respectful, Equitable, Authentic, Life-long) Relationships Program |
2018 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Children, Youth | The overall objective of the R.E.A.L. Relationships Program is to teach youth the personal and social skills and tools necessary to develop and maintain life-long, healthy, respectful and safe relationships. The program also engages students in grades 6-8 to think critically about issues of systemic violence, including sexual and/or physical violence. Funding will support two adult facilitators (one male and one female) and one or two youth facilitators who will co-facilitate ten workshops per classroom at Salt Spring Island Middle School. Visit Website |
| Theatre SKAM Association | 7eventy 7even by Charles Tidler | 2018 | Grantee | Arts & Culture | Adults | The new Canadian play, 7eventy 7even by Charles Tidler, will be presented in a site specific location by the Theatre SKAM Association. Consisting of 77 short micro scenes, the play tackles the theme of engagement and community. Charles Tidler is a locally renowned author who spent a year recording overheard snippets of conversations from passersby and fashioned them into very short scenes. An authentic snapshot of the time we live in, where we scroll and swipe for the next micro drama, Victoria is captured in a very real light. Activities before and after the show will further engage audiences. Visit Website |
| Threshold Housing Society | Foundations for Youth: Reaching into the Community | 2018 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Belonging & Engagement | Youth | Threshold Housing Society’s (THS) Life Foundations Program was designed as a comprehensive youth-centered initiative that provides at-risk youth with the skills necessary to successfully exit homelessness and avoid re-entry as adults. Thus far, the program has only included youth at THS, and demonstrated a winning combination of engagement and capacity building. In developing the program to its next logical evolution, THS would expand Life Foundations to allow wait-listed youth and youth from partnering agencies to participate. Reaching beyond the bounds of THS to engage youth and agencies in the wider community will mean long- term sustainability and relevance for the program. Visit Website |
| Tides Canada Initiatives Society | The Existence Project | 2018 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | Youth, Adults | Funding would support essential staffing costs for one year of The Existence Project workshop, which is offered to up to 80 people with a lived experience of homelessness (aged 18-80) who use the services provided by Anawim House. We employ a storyteller as the starting point for guided creative reflection that encourages participants to share their perspectives on the social issues that affect their day-to-day lives. This powerful group process, which includes socially minded artists, students and community allies, has proven successful in transforming the debilitating shame, isolation and past traumas of marginalized communities into dignity and connection to community. Visit Website |
| Together Against Poverty Society | Federal Disability Advocacy Project – CPP and Disability Tax Credit | 2018 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Standard of Living | Adults | This project is an addition to Together Against Poverty Society’s (TAPS) Federal Disability Advocacy Project, and will focus on creating resource guides, public legal education materials, and direct assistance to individuals eligible to receive the federal government’s disability tax credit. Over the last year, TAPS has received an increasing demand for assistance with the disability tax credit. This project seeks to address the complex nature of both eligibility requirements and the application for the tax credit, which includes medical opinions and significant documentation from clients. Visit Website |
| University of Victoria | Making Historical Records Accessible to First Nations: The Colonial Despatches | 2018 | Grantee | Learning | Adults, First Nations | As the only digital archive of the correspondence between British authorities and the governors of Vancouver Island and British Columbia from 1846-1871, the Colonial Despatches contain many historically significant records about the settling of Victoria and Vancouver Island. However, most of these documents are largely inaccessible to researchers and particularly to Indigenous peoples. This new initiative, in collaboration and consultation with the First People’s Cultural Council and the Union of BC Indian Chiefs, will decolonize the archive by developing enhanced and revised search terms, along with a newly engineered search interface to make the existing data useful to First Nations. |
| Vancouver Island AIDS Society | Connecting for Wellness | 2018 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Health & Wellness | Adults | Westshore AIDS Vancouver Island Health Centre is an Opiate Agonist Treatment and primary care clinic for people with substance use disorders. Most patients attend appointments with loved ones and it has become evident that families are in need of support and education about substance use, overdose prevention, and wellness strategies. Patient caregivers experience high levels of stress, isolation, stigma, and grief. This has been compounded by the overdose emergency, and a lack of services specific to their needs. Funding would facilitate caregivers to build community together through establishing support and educational groups. Visit Website |
| Vancouver Island Providence Community Association | Therapeutic Farm Program for Adults with Developmental Disabilities | 2018 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Belonging & Engagement | Youth, Adults | The Vancouver Island Providence Community Association (VIPCA) has provided a therapeutic farm program for adults with disabilities in the Cowichan Valley since 1979. This unique program welcomes over 30 clients aged 25+ with developmental disabilities each year. |
| Via Choralis Performance Society | Winter/Spring Performances – 2019 | 2018 | Grantee | Arts & Culture | Adults | Via Choralis Performance Society continues in 2018-2019 as a high quality Arts & Culture Organization, presenting three performances in February and April 2019. The project provides live performances to local audiences and music educational opportunities to student instrumentalists and vocalists looking for performance experience. The project involves an eclectic and attractive repertoire, including Benjamin Britten’s “Choral Dances” from Gloriana, and works from five centuries by composers from the 1600s to the present day. Partial proceeds will be donated to Jeneece Place. Visit Website |
| Victoria Community Food Hub Society | Good Food Collective Impact Strategy | 2018 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Adults, Youth, Children | The Good Food Network, made up of 600 signatories, works together towards a vision of healthy local food for everyone in the Capital Region. Fruits of Collaboration to date include supporting gardens and farm programs in schools to increase food literacy, working with the Food Share Network channeling rescued fresh foods into neighbourhood-based programs, and supporting local farms and food providers growing the local economy. Funding is requested to build coordinated leadership of these efforts, launch a pilot approach to address the impacts of colonization on Indigenous food systems, and create an evaluation framework on the Good Food 2025 Strategy. |
| Victoria Conservatory of Music | Getting Started: Early Childhood Music Education Outreach | 2018 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Getting Started in our Community | Children | The Victoria Conservatory of Music’s ‘Getting Started – Early Childhood Music Education Outreach’ initiative provides access to music education free of charge for young children (infants to five years old) and their parent(s) through childcare centers and preschools. The initiative focuses on centers that serve marginalized communities including Aboriginal peoples, refugees, teenage mothers, and military families. Early education in music has benefits that transcend the musical domain and no child should be denied access to these benefits on the rationale of financial need. This specialized music outreach initiative for young children is the foundation for future cognitive and emotional health. Visit Website |
| Victoria Dandelion Society | Transport To Treatment – T3 Project | 2018 | Grantee | Safety | Adults | “Transport To Treatment” is a project born from an identified need to aid street-entrenched and marginalized citizens who have become incarcerated, and are searching for a way to break the cycle of recidivism linked to drug and alcohol abuse. The Dandelion Society provides transportation to treatment centres for clients who have, through a judiciary interim release hearing, been granted bail providing they attend a treatment center while on release. The Dandelion Society found that providing a ride and companionship for these clients leads to greater success in treatment, and avoids breaching their release requirements and the imminent return to jail. |
| Victoria Independent Film & Video Festival | Victoria Film Festival’s 25th Anniversary Exhibition | 2018 | Grantee | Arts & Culture | Adults | Victoria Film Festival’s (VFF) 25th Anniversary Exhibition is a free, public art program presenting independent short films from each of our 25 years. Films are brought back to life by screening them in unusual ways, celebrating both the films and the VFF’s impact in the community. The Atrium Building and outdoor pop-up locations throughout Victoria will serve as the exhibition’s free public venues, engaging community participants in city spaces by recontextualizing films in unique, odd, or uncanny installations using cutting-edge technology and a wicked sense of play. The exhibition reinforces VFF’s vision of film as a community-building tool. Visit Website |
| Victoria Kiwanis Foundation | Kiwanis Emergency Youth Shelter Foundation Repair Project | 2018 | Grantee | Housing | Youth | Kiwanis Emergency Youth Shelter (KEYS) is a transitional housing facility for youth-at-risk in the Victoria area. The facility is approximately 112 years old and requires significant renovation and repair. For example, the perimeter drainage system is blocked by tree roots and does not meet building code standards, and the building foundation has significant cracking. Funding would support the repair of the drainage system to meet current building codes to ensure KEYS’ continued support of youth-at-risk and homelessness prevention efforts. |
| Victoria Native Friendship Centre | Siem Liem – A Social Housing Model | 2018 | Grantee | Housing | Adults, First Nations | The pressing issue of social housing for off-reserve Indigenous people living in an urban setting is being addressed by the Victoria Native Friendship Centre through its 41-unit social housing village, Siem Lelum or “Respected House” (Salish language). Siem Lelum addresses housing in a more holistic and Indigenous view of community, that includes a community building and a family-style kitchen, with culturally-based programs designed by and for residents. This new and successful model of culturally supportive social housing is a replicable model for governments to consider. Funding would support awareness efforts for replication of this model, and program-services for residents. Visit Website |
| Victoria Philharmonic Choir Society | JS Bach’s St Matthew Passion Choral Concert | 2018 | Grantee | Arts & Culture | Adults | Funding will support a choral concert integral to the Victoria Philharmonic Choir’s (VPC) vision: J.S. Bach’s St. Matthew Passion. The VPC has become a vital part of the region’s musical culture and this concert fulfills VPC’s plan to present one of Bach’s major works each year. In April 2019, a Greater Victoria audience will be treated to a high-quality performance of this major choral work featuring 75 voices, a professional orchestra and internationally notable soloists. The health and well-being of choristers, audience members, musicians and volunteers will benefit, promoting a sense of belonging and community to the 700 people involved. Visit Website |
| Victoria Rainbow Kitchen Society | Rainbow Kitchen Development Project | 2018 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Health & Wellness | Adults | The Rainbow Kitchen provides a nutritious and delicious hot lunch to 110- 140 guests a day, five days a week. An estimated 36,000+ meals are served each year in a safe, non-judgmental, and welcoming environment free of charge and no questions asked. Guests include low-income and/or isolated seniors, working poor families, the unemployed/unemployable, and those dealing with mental health or addiction issues. Guests often describe this as their personal food security and their community. The Rainbow Kitchen recently hired its first Executive Director, and 2019 will include development of a strategic plan and implementing change strategies to increase sustainability. Visit Website |
| Victoria Society for Children with Autism | Respite and Recreation Funding for autistic children and their families | 2018 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Children, Adults | The Victoria Society for Children with Autism (VSCA) provides support to parents with children on the autism spectrum. Many of these parents have had to leave full-time employment to take care of their child, and it can be exhausting and lonely. VSCA runs respite programs for parents and support programs to assist children by providing the additional support required to attend recreational and community events. This support is vital to community inclusion for the autistic child, as well as for caregiver respite to reduce stress, strengthen our families, and strengthen community bonds in the Capital Region. Visit Website |
| Victoria Symphony Society | Nuyaml-il Kulhulmx: Singing the Earth | 2018 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Arts & Culture | Adults, First Nations | Building upon a history of meaningful collaboration with our First Nation partners, the Victoria Symphony showcases Anna Höstman’s “Nuyaml-il Kulhulmx “Singing the Earth”, which describes the beauty and spirit of British Columbia’s Bella Coola Valley in a multilingual and cross- disciplinary setting. Höstmans, who grew up in Bella Coola, created “Singing the Earth” with Sto:lo installation artist and dramaturge Dylan Robinson, and musicologist Patrick Nickelsen. The work features Marion Newman, who was born in Bella Coola and is of Kwagiulth/Sto:lo heritage. The “Singing the Earth” performance will be preceded by a 30-minute video called “Cry Rock” by Banchi Hanuse. Visit Website |
| Victoria Therapeutic Riding Association | Program Funding 2018-2019 | 2018 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Health & Wellness | Adults, Youth | Victoria Therapeutic Riding Association provides equine-assisted therapeutic programs for individuals with physical, cognitive and social challenges. The Adaptive Riding Program helps meet the physical and occupational therapy goals of each student and provides safe and effective recreation. The Early Intervention Program aids in the physical and cognitive development of children between the ages of three to five years old. The Stable Management Program builds on the Adaptive Riding Program, incorporating stable management practices to develop personal responsibility, behavioral regulation, and time management skills. In 2018/2019 we will introduce a new program, Equine Facilitated Wellness, consisting of equine assisted trauma-counseling. Visit Website |
| Vox Humana Chamber Choir Society | 2018-2019 Concert Season | 2018 | Grantee | Arts & Culture | Adults, Youth | Funding will support partial operating expenses from December 2018-May 2019 for rehearsal and performance venue rental, purchase of music, and the commissioning of two works by local composers. Funding will also offset the related costs of providing free tickets to persons 25 years old and under to attend one concert, and allow the Society to provide admission by donation for three concerts.This support will help Vox Humana Chamber Choir Society maintain high-quality performances of standard and new choral music in the Capital Region. Visit Website |
| W.O.L.F. Kids Wilderness Our Learning Foundation Kids Society | Xwaaqw’um Eco-Cultural Restoration Plan | 2018 | Grantee | Environmental Sustainability | Adults, First Nations | The Stqeeye’ Society supports cultural and ecological restoration on Salt Spring Island at Burgoyne Bay Provincial Park, also known by its traditional Hul’q’umi’num name, Xwaaqw’um [pronounced Who-aaa-kwum]. Xwaaqw’um is part of the territory of the Quw’utsun people, and their relationship with the land/sea has been a vital component of the ecological integrity of critical and endangered ecosystems. The first step towards strengthening eco-cultural restoration is bringing together traditional ecological knowledge with western scientific knowledge to create a restoration plan. The plan will form the foundation for healing human relationships, revitalizing traditional food systems and increasing ecological resilience at Xwaaqw’um. Visit Website |
| Watershed Watch Salmon Society | Developing the constituency for salmon conservation in Victoria | 2018 | Grantee | Environmental Sustainability | Adults | Watershed Watch Salmon Society’s work has benefited BC’s wild salmon and watersheds since 1998. This project expands the capacity of Watershed Watch in Greater Victoria. While polling shows broad public support for salmon conservation across the political spectrum, more effective public engagement is needed. By increasing public outreach, Watershed Watch will engage new audiences within the community, increase knowledge of threats facing salmon, and develop a more engaged public base to better defend salmon. This strengthens Watershed Watch’s ability to further influence policies essential to watersheds, wild salmon, and our ecosystems. Visit Website |
| We Rage, We Weep Alzheimer Foundation | Arts & Alzheimer’s Program | 2018 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | Seniors | Arts & Alzheimer’s is an art and music participation program for seniors with dementia still living at home with their caregivers, stimulating minds supporting caregivers. Dementia can make persons with the disease, their caregivers, and their families feel lonely and isolated. The program includes socialization and meaningful activity. Reminiscence and personal expression are encouraged. The structured routine provides familiarity and the art and music offer an expressive outlet. The participants routinely make new friends at a time when their world is otherwise shrinking. The caregivers are an enormous support to one another. All together these elements enable aging in place. Visit Website |
| West Coast Children’s Choral Society | Prelude Choir – Victoria Children’s Choir | 2018 | Grantee | Arts & Culture | Children | In 2016, the Victoria Children’s Choir (VCC) launched the Prelude Choir, a non-auditioned ensemble for children aged seven to nine years. This pilot program was so successful in its first season that it filled to its capacity of 25 choristers. Last year, the VCC doubled the size of this choir, introducing 50 children in Greater Victoria to voice, sound, and music through fun and interactive group exercises and empowering their future musical pursuits. Funding would support this program in 2019. Visit Website |
| Young Parents Support Network | Future Planning for Young Parents | 2018 | Grantee | Getting Started in our Community | Youth | The Young Parents Support Network provides supportive services for young parents ages 13-29 and their children in the Greater Victoria region. Services include outreach and individual support, parenting programs and other programs to support young parents to build better futures. Funding is requested to revise and incorporate new elements into our most requested program, “Future Planning.” This program provides individual support, and weekly programs in a group setting, to assist young parents to identify and achieve goals related to education, employment, health and mental well- being, parenting and personal growth. Visit Website |
| 1000×5 Children’s Book Recycling Project Society | 1000X5 Children’s Book Recycling Project Society | 2017 | Grantee | Learning | Children | 1000×5 Children’s Book Recycling Society provides books for babies and preschoolers in a crucial early brain development and literacy stage. The Society’s goals are that every child has a home library and that those books are read to them 1000 times by age five, building lifelong language, literacy and social-emotional skills. Many families, due to poverty or unfamiliarity with early reading, own few or no books. Through the project, 1000 children will receive three books monthly from 24 agencies. Funds will buy books for babies and support the part-time Project Leader. Visit Website |
| Aboriginal Coalition to End Homelessness Society | Strengthening Connections | 2017 | Grantee | Housing | First Nations, Children, Youth, Adults, Seniors, Disabled | Aboriginal people are over-represented in the homelessness population, accounting for 32.6% of Victoria’s homeless population. The Aboriginal Coalition to End Homelessness (ACEH) brings leadership and expertise to address Aboriginal housing and homelessness and define the problems and solutions through an Indigenous lens. The ACEH is governed by Indigenous people with representation from various Indigenous organizations and the three Tribal Groups on the Island. Funds are requested to achieve goals outlined in the Action Plan in the areas of shelter, housing and homes; governance, policy and resources; community relations; and support services, as well as organize an Indigenous Housing Symposium. Visit Website |
| Ballet Victoria Society | Funds for production technical support | 2017 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Arts & Culture | Seniors, Youth | Ballet Victoria is seeking support to update its stage lighting with six LED theatre lights, and purchase a professional video camera and laptop computer with software to run sound, projections and lights for all performances. The lighting equipment will provide an enhanced viewing experience for audiences, in particular for seniors and public schools. A professional video camera to record performances and a laptop for editing, rendering and storing video archival material will provide Ballet Victoria’s Dance School with added educational capacity to train its students. Visit Website |
| BC Cancer Foundation | Replacement of vital Tissue Processor to support immunotherapy clinical trials | 2017 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Adults, Seniors | BC Cancer Foundation is the fundraising partner of BC Cancer Agency. Victoria’s Deeley Research Centre (DRC) is an integral part of the Agency’s Vancouver Island Centre. Researchers at the DRC study how the immune system responds to cancer and how best to enhance this response for preventative and therapeutic purposes. DRC is poised to bring immunotherapy clinical trials to cancer patients early 2018, with additional trials for 2019. The Tissue Processor prepares tumour tissue samples, providing critical insight into immune Environment within the patient’s cancer. The current aged unit cannot be relied upon to perform its critical duties. Visit Website |
| Beacon Community Association | Seniors Engagement | 2017 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Seniors, Disabled | Beacon Community Services Seniors Engagement project combines two components of our seniors strategy to address seniors isolation and food security. The monthly Seniors Lunch brings 50 isolated seniors together with 25 volunteers for a nutritious meal, socialization, entertainment, information and an extra meal to take home for another day. The Neighbourhood Chats connect isolated seniors with their neighbours, information about local programs and services. The Beacon Outreach Worker will connect professionals with information to refer seniors to supports. Through these projects, isolated seniors will be connected with supports and healthy meals leading to increased quality of life and decreased isolation. Visit Website |
| Belfry Theatre Society | Indigenous Artists & Arts Administrators Project | 2017 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Arts & Culture | First Nations | In partnership with Full Circle: First Nations Performance, the Belfry Theatre seeks funding to support graduates of the First Nations Aboriginal Ensemble to join the Belfry as paid associates. Associates will gain experience and receive mentorship in areas of interest, whether that be performance, design, construction or administration. Funding would also support a Cultural Liaison position, to be filled by an Indigenous artist or administrator, to help guide the integration of associates and Belfry staff, and the weaving together of Indigenous practices and colonial ways of making theatre. Visit Website |
| Book Clubs for Inmates Inc./Circles de livres pour detenues Inc. | Book Clubs for Inmates and Victoria Writers Initiative | 2017 | Grantee | Learning | Adults | This project will support Book Club for Inmates’ monthly book clubs at William Head Institution and expand programming to include six to eight writing workshops, facilitated by local writers in partnership with the Federation of BC Writers. Writers from Greater Victoria will facilitate workshops for a group of 20 inmates. Through writing prompts and exercises, writers will help inmates develop language tools, boost their self-esteem and confidence in learning, and build a community around writing and creative self-expression. The workshops will enhance inmates’ communication skills, ultimately helping them develop the life skills necessary for successful reintegration into the community. Visit Website |
| Bridges for Women Society | Bridges Self-Employment Program | 2017 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Economy | Adult | The Bridges Self-Employment Program is an innovative entrepreneurial skills training program for women survivors of abuse in the Greater Victoria area. The aim is to grow the personal skills of participating women to identify and overcome the impact of violence, abuse, and trauma on employment, as well as provide entrepreneurial skills to develop and operate an economically-viable small business. This program seeks to contribute to, and nurture, local community economic development by elevating and integrating women from poverty or near poverty into successful, sustainable self-employment. Visit Website |
| Broadmead Care Society | Improving Health & Wellness through Spiritual Care When Grieving | 2017 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Health & Wellness | Disabled, Adults, Seniors | The Wellness and Spiritual Care program at Broadmead Care plays a vital role in the lives of veterans, seniors, adults with disabilities, their families, staff and volunteers. With an increase in the average age of admissions into the Broadmead Care facilities, there is also a rise in the number of deaths. In 2016, Broadmead Care had a total of 106 deaths and, from January through July 2017, 74 deaths. The need for grief counselling, support and education has increased, placing a greater demand on care staff. It is the organization’s goal to increase program services to support more individuals across multiple sites. Visit Website |
| Camosun College Foundation | A Network Analysis of Literacy Services in the GVA | 2017 | Grantee | Learning | Adults, Youth, Children, Seniors | Camosun College participates in the Greater Victoria Alliance for Literacy, a collaborative to coordinate literacy service delivery in the region. The Alliance seeks to increase the number of people accessing and committing to literacy services to improve their social and economic opportunities. Funding would support a Coordinator position to create and support working groups; liaise with the literacy network to understand needs, identify opportunities as well as build relationships and trust; and provide recommendations to help optimize the literacy system so that it reduces barriers and stigma, increases access to services, and improves assessment and evaluation. Visit Website |
| Capital Region Prostate Centre | Know Your PSA – Vulnerable Populations Screening & Health Literacy | 2017 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Health & Wellness | Adults | The Island Prostate Centre provides men and their families with prostate health information, education and counselling. The Centre offers free programs, supports and public screening events, where men can learn about their health and access a free Prostate-Specific Antigen (PSA) test. Early PSA screening (a simple blood test) is vital to early diagnosis and treatment of prostate cancer, which affects one in eight men. As vulnerable populations are not often present at public screening events, funding is requested to provide screening and health promotion on site at Victoria Cool Aid Society locations. Visit Website |
| Centennial United Church | Access Ramp | 2017 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | Disabled | Centennial United Church has renovated a former Sunday School and Daycare area to provide the Burnside Gorge neighbourhood with much needed community meeting space. Through an agreement with the Burnside Gorge Community Association, the Church often provides overflow capacity to the Association for community meetings and events. Funding is requested to install an access ramp to make the space fully accessible to people with disabilities or mobility issues. Visit Website |
| Child Abuse Prevention and Counselling Society of Greater Victoria (Mary Manning Centre) | Raising Happi Kids Konnect | 2017 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Children, Youth, Adults | This program builds regional capacity for serving families affected by abuse in the Westshore and Victoria. Funding will support expansion of a proven, cost-effective, evidence-based model of group counselling services through on-site service delivery, mentoring partnerships, and regional collaboration. The program will build new elements of mentorship into this tested model, and address waitlists of trauma-affected families. It will result in increased service capacity across the region, shared knowledge between clinicians, 60 families served, increased protective factors for children, safety planning, self-regulation skills, and reduced isolation, stigmatization and family stress. Visit Website |
| Citadel Therapy Canine Society | Citadel Canine PTSD Service Dog Program | 2017 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Adults, Disabled | Citadel Canine Society provides training and delivery of service dogs to veterans and first-responders experiencing Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) or Occupational Stress Injuries. Dogs are rescued from local animal shelters and provided to candidates at no cost. Impacts of the program are profound: substance abuse issues begin to disappear, prescribed medication use drops, sleep patterns recover, and personal mobility, physical and mental health, and relationships improve. Funding would support rescue, adoption, training fees, boarding, and veterinary costs associated with the training and delivery of the service dogs. Visit Website |
| City of Victoria | Inclusive Swimming Program | 2017 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Sports & Recreation | Children, Adults, Newcomers | This project will provide access to swimming lessons for children with disabilities and women from the Muslim community, or for other women with cultural sensitivity requirements. Both groups require extra staff and facility support to make swimming lessons a possibility. Muslim women cannot swim with males in the facility, so their lessons are special after-hours swims staffed by women. Children with disabilities often require one-to-one support. Funding for this project will help ensure that these individuals are not excluded from the life-saving opportunity to learn how to swim because of the financial barriers associated with specialized programming. Visit Website |
| Civic Orchestra Society of Victoria | Support for operations grant and bursary for section leaders | 2017 | Grantee | Arts & Culture | Adults, Seniors | The Civic Orchestra recently hired a new Music Director on a three-year contract. Its key objective over this time is to improve the quality of musicians in the orchestra. Funding will support young musicians to encourage them to audition as section leaders. At present, only the First Violin section leader is a paid member of the orchestra. High quality section leaders can attract strong section players and thus raise the overall quality of musicians. Visit Website |
| Community Arts Council of Greater Victoria | Music Program for Marginalized People | 2017 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | Adults, Seniors, Disabled | The Victoria Arts Council is requesting funding to expand the Music for Marginalized People program, an interactive, healing arts program for people marginalized by illness, disability, poverty or advanced age. The program includes singing and instrumental music, complemented by intermittent sessions of theatre, puppetry, and dance, and provides participants with opportunities for learning, self-expression, mental stimulation, enjoyment, socialization, and improved physical and mental health. The goal of the program is to address the challenges of isolation and marginalization experienced by vulnerable populations. |
| Community Social Planning Council of Greater Victoria | Building housing stability: sheltering renters in the capital region | 2017 | Grantee | Housing | Adults | This project will contribute vital knowledge about the various factors that leave tenants vulnerable to housing instability in the Capital Region, including municipal and provincial policy, aging housing stock, low vacancy rates, and high cost of rent. It will also illuminate some of the impacts of rental housing instability on the region and its communities. Using a community-based research methodology, the project will produce tools and recommendations to support housing stability and help inform evidence-based decision-making in our region. Visit Website |
| Construction Foundation of BC (2012) Society | The SHIFT – From Care to Career | 2017 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | Youth | The program is focused on helping youth in care and transitioning out of care to become employable in the construction industry so they can achieve a sponsored apprenticeship and earn while they learn. Achieving a Drivers License and completing safety certificates are the most important learnings they can undertake to become more employable. A grant from the Victoria Foundation would help pay for the licensing and certification fees required. Visit Website |
| Cowichan Green Community Foundation | Farming and Fooding with Friends | 2017 | Grantee | Learning | Youth, Adults, Disabled | The Farming and Fooding with Friends project of the Cowichan Green Community supports youth with developmental disabilities to enter into the agriculture and food sectors through hands-on learning at their two training farms and commercial kitchen. Participants will learn a variety of skills relating to producing food and seeds as well as food reclamation. The intention is to support a social enterprise producing a variety of food-related products that can become self-sustaining and employ the participants longer term. This expands the Vancouver Island University Workplace Essential Skills Training program and the Cowichan Green Community Foundation’s farm training programs. Visit Website |
| Dance Victoria Society | Dancers of Damelahamid Outreach | 2017 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Arts & Culture | First Nations | Dance Victoria will host several outreach initiatives in tandem with its January 2018 performance of Dancers of Damelahamid at the McPherson Playhouse. Ticket subsidies will support local First Nations communities to attend the performance, while an exhibition titled “By Invitation Only: Dance, Confederation and Reconciliation” will be on display during and after the performance, and accompanied by a presentation from its co-curators. The Artistic Director of Dancers of Damelahamid will also host a free dance workshop, open to the public. Visit Website |
| Ensemble Laude Choral Society | Mentoring Emerging Female Artists | 2017 | Grantee | Arts & Culture | Children, Youth, Adults | The Ensemble Laude Choral Society reaches out to children and youth to inspire love of music and musicianship. The project will address the lack of choral opportunities for girls in the local community by creating a girls youth choir. Interest and enrolment will be generated through choral clinics in local middle and high schools. The project will also hire three to five emerging professional musicians as section leads to hone their mentorship skills, provide them with soloist opportunities, and groom them for potential choral Director roles in the future. Visit Website |
| Esquimalt Neighbourhood House | You’re Not Alone: Access to Community-Based Counselling Support | 2017 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Adults, Seniors | This community-based mental health and addiction program provides supportive counselling to 350 adults annually. The program is rooted in accessibility, especially in at-risk and low-income communities. It is free of charge, inclusive, and client-cantered, using a strengths-based approach. Forty trained volunteer counsellors respond compassionately to the full person, listening, advocating, and following up with each individual client. Funding will allow Esquimalt Neighbourhood House to continue this low-barrier program free of charge, including after-hours availability, matching, and client referrals. Visit Website |
| Fernwood Neighbourhood Resource Group Society | Neighbourhood Food Access & Literacy Development Project | 2017 | Grantee | Standard of Living | Children, Youth, Adults, Seniors | Neighbourhood Food Access & Literacy develops and expands the family, child and youth-focused food programs offered through the eight community centers that make up the Coalition of Neighbourhood Houses, serving 20,000 families annually. This project will increase capacity by centralizing distribution through Fernwood NRG, which has added infrastructure to expand food distribution, and will create efficiency through partnership with the Good Food Box. The project will also develop staff and volunteer time at each Coalition agency for food distribution, and explore adding new community centre members, donors and partners to enhance the impact and reach of the program. Visit Website |
| Friends of Living and Learning Through Loss Society | Supporting Youth Through Difficult Times – Community Training | 2017 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Health & Wellness | Youth | Learning through Loss trains community youth workers to support youth through difficult times and grief, whether it be death, family breakdown, illness, substance use, cultural loss, or other events that youth face that disrupt their Health & Wellness. Training is led by two qualified facilitators and focuses on skills and practical strategies using the Learning Through Loss approach. Funding would support the delivery of three full-day education training sessions, reaching over 75 youth-serving professionals within the Capital Region, including staff working with Indigenous youth, and school-based counsellors and teachers. Visit Website |
| Galiano Activity Centre Society | Galiano Community Daycare Pilot Program and Evaluation | 2017 | Grantee | Getting Started | Children | Funding for this project will support the pilot and evaluation of Galiano Island’s first licensed daycare. The daycare will be open three days a week and care for eight children each day. An Early Childhood Educator will provide play-based care with a focus on outdoor experiences and creative exploration. This service will improve the lives of young families by reducing stress, increasing family together time, and improving families’ economic prospects. This will help enable families to remain living on Galiano. It will also position Galiano to access government funding in the future. Visit Website |
| Galiano Conservancy Association | Food for the Future Project | 2017 | Grantee | Environment | Children, Youth, Adults, Seniors | The Galiano Community Food Forest is a model of climate change-resilient local food production that can be applied anywhere on the BC coast. The Galiano Conservancy will share its experience through the delivery of Food Forest workshops and training to local community members and regional groups interested in learning about, and replicating, this permaculture model. Further, an on-site nursery will begin producing food forest seeds and starts, making these plants available to the greater community. Nursery sales along with the launch of “Forest Garden Teas” will contribute to the financial sustainability of the Community Food Forest. Visit Website |
| Garth Homer Society | LifeStreams Learning | 2017 | Grantee | Learning | Youth, Adults, Disabled | LifeStreams Learning is an ongoing pilot educational program for young adults with cognitive disabilities. It gives learners individualized academic, literacy, and numeracy learning, and vocational and life skills development, with the aim of building capacity and opportunities for inclusion, independence, and employment. The program utilizes an innovative learning management database to create a unique instructional regime for each learner through an iterative process of discovery, learning engagement, and confidence building. In the year ahead, the program will grow its current roster of 20 learners to 50, through fully integrating with Garth Homer’s Employment and Community Inclusion services. Visit Website |
| Greater Victoria Citizens Counselling Centre | Volunteer Counsellor Training | 2017 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Adults, Seniors | This organization provides short-term, affordable counselling to 1200 adult residents annually. With funding, Citizens’ will select, train, and supervise 36 volunteers in two concurrent 10 month training programs of 200 hours each. They will also develop and conduct a four month Couples Counselling Training program for 16 graduate volunteer counselors. Timely and appropriate short-term emotional support for issues including depression, stress/anxiety/panic attacks, anger, grief and loss, self-esteem, relationships and communication, abuse, and addiction helps prevent family breakdown and exacerbation of mental disorders, suicide, and violence against others. It provides stability and support for clients in difficult, sometimes overwhelming, situations. Visit Website |
| Greater Victoria Coalition to End Homelessness Society | Addressing Youth Homelessness through a Prevention Framework | 2017 | Grantee | Housing | Youth | This project is a cross-sectoral collective impact initiative addressing youth homelessness through a prevention framework. It will support a range of activities under the purview of the Youth Task Force with a focus on early intervention. Specifically, this project will support the region in piloting a school-based youth at-risk identification and assessment tool that will connect youth at-risk to appropriate school-based, community-based or clinical support services. This will reduce the numbers of youth experiencing homelessness and the duration of a youth homelessness episode, and will enhance the functioning of the region-wide homelessness servicing system from the perspective of youth. Visit Website |
| Greater Victoria Volunteer Society (Volunteer Victoria) | Teenage Volunteers: Expanding Belonging and Learning through Community Engagement | 2017 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | Youth | Youth under 16 years are often challenged to find meaningful volunteer positions outside of the school Environment. Recent changes to the career education curriculum will exacerbate this challenge for up to 4,000 youth living in the Capital Region, as Grade 9 students will be required to focus on the career value of volunteering, and the role of community in career planning. Funding will help Volunteer Victoria identify and test new and sustainable volunteering opportunities for youth aged 14-16; reduce barriers to younger youth engagement; collect knowledge, tools, and best practices from volunteer coordinators serving youth; and create new age-appropriate materials. Visit Website |
| HeroWork Program Society | Social Enterprise Development | 2017 | Grantee | Economy | Adults | HeroWork helps strengthen local charities by renewing and refreshing their physical infrastructure through exciting special events called Radical Renovations, where community comes together with cooperation and common vision to renovate a charity’s building. Like all charities, HeroWork requires stable and sustainable funding. Funding is requested to develop one or more social enterprises that will both fill a community need and contribute to financial sustainability. HeroWork is in the feasibility stage of developing two social enterprises, with “Tiny Houses” in response to the housing crisis, and “Handy Heroes”, an online portal to connect trades people to local projects. Visit Website |
| Home is Where We Live – LifeCycles Project Society | Rescuing Abundance in the Urban Orchard | 2017 | Grantee | Environment | Children, Youth, Adults, Seniors | Lifecycles’ Fruit Tree Project imagines the urban orchard as a place where abundance is created together. Each year, hundreds of volunteers harvest tens of thousands of pounds of fruit from backyard trees in the Capital Region. Fruit is shared among homeowners, volunteers, food banks and community organizations. LifeCycles is requesting funding to expand its capacity by developing an online scheduling system and to review project practices to eliminate current bottlenecks. Expanded capacity would allow LifeCycles to better meet community need by increasing the volume of fruit picked from 60,000lbs to 100,000lbs per year. Visit Website |
| Inclusion Powell River Society | K-Lumet Pilot Project | 2017 | Grantee | Economy | Adults, Disabled | Inclusion Powell River Society is partnering with K-Lumet, a social enterprise and employment-training program for people with disabilities. The social enterprise produces a quick-burning fire starter made from 100% recycled materials. K-Lumet seeks to employ people with all levels of ability, with a focus on employing individuals with developmental disabilities who are otherwise unemployed. Visit Website |
| Industrial Areas Foundation Canada | Reweaving the Fabric of Society: For the Common Good | 2017 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | Adults, Seniors | Greater Victoria Acting Together (GVAT) is a collaborative network of diverse organizations including labour, faith and community groups working together to tackle common social issues in the Capital Region. Member groups are taught the skills of relational organizing to bring about social change through acting together on the most important issues in the region. This is grassroots, membership-driven, values-based community organizing. Funding is requested to help develop the capacity of the GVAT collaborative and to facilitate public engagement with its members and the broader community. Visit Website |
| Island Deaf & Hard of Hearing Centre Association | Sound of Change Initiative | 2017 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Belonging & Engagement | Adults, Seniors, Disabled | Hearing loss is the most common sensory deficit in North America and has become a severe social and health problem. Especially in the elderly, hearing loss can significantly impact everyday life, causing loneliness and isolation. IDHHC has established the Sound of Change Initiative to provide free refurbished hearing aids to vulnerable and at-risk populations, especially low-income seniors and adults. This initiative will remove barriers to accessing hearing supports and provide a full range of services to vulnerable persons with hearing loss, including technical aids, family supports, aural rehabilitation, communication assistance, and employment supports. Visit Website |
| Jewish Community Centre of Victoria | The Victoria International Jewish Film Festival | 2017 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | Youth, Adults, Seniors | The Victoria International Jewish Film Festival presents newly made films from around the world that center on themes of Jewish cultural identity and history. These films are mainly independent productions that have not yet been publicly released, and are unlikely to be screened in local commercial cinemas. Films are chosen to broaden awareness of cultural diversity, deepen understanding, and increase community engagement. Primarily organized by volunteers, the Festival seeks to bring together disparate audiences to learn about, and reflect on, the universal messages expressed in these Jewish-themed films. Visit Website |
| John Howard Society of Victoria | Feeding Ourselves and Others Therapeutic Community Garden Project | 2017 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | Adults, Disabled | Feeding Ourselves and Others is a unique therapeutic garden project located in the Blenkinsop Valley that provides important support, stabilization, and community building to some of the region’s most disadvantaged citizens, including persons with mental health and/or addictions issues and individuals doing court-mandated community service work. In 2016, the project engaged 64 participants and 23 community volunteers, which was over four times the number of people involved in 2012. As an organic food-producing social enterprise, the project also sold over $7,000 worth of produce to the community. Visit Website |
| Kaleidoscope Theatre Production Society | Family Theatre Festival 2018 | 2017 | Grantee | Arts & Culture | Children, Youth | Kaleidoscope Theatre will be kicking off their 2018-2019 season with its sixth-annual Family Theatre Festival, an all-ages festival in Victoria designed to introduce children to the magic of live theatre in an affordable and interactive manner. It will include a new work, “The Last Beothuk’, presented by Kaleidoscope as well as performances by Puente Theatre, Story Theatre, and renowned puppeteer Bonnie Duncan of the Gottabees. By presenting new work and collaborating with local performing arts groups, Kaleidoscope remains dedicated to its core values while sharing resources with local partners. Visit Website |
| KidSport Canada – Victoria Chapter | So ALL Kids Can Play Sport Registration | 2017 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Sports & Recreation | Children, Youth | This sport registration program provides local children in financial need the opportunity to play organized sport alongside their peers and under the supervision of qualified coaches and positive adult role models. This organization works with over 200 sport organizations to cover registration fees and provide kids living in poverty with the chance to get in the game and benefit from lessons about teamwork, work ethic, fair play, and leadership. Involving kids in sport and physical activity is a powerful preventative measure to combat isolation, current trends of childhood obesity, as well as related long-term health consequences. Visit Website |
| L’Arche Comox Valley (LArche) | Craftworx Collective | 2017 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | Adults, Disabled | Craftworx Collective is a social purpose art collective for adults with developmental disabilities, run from the new L’Arche I Belong Centre in Courtenay, BC. The Collective seeks to provide the opportunity for individuals with disabilities to engage their creativity and enhance their skills as they craft products that will be marketed for sale. Craftworx Collective will offer conventionally “unemployable” adults the dignity and purpose of work, the ability to earn money, and the opportunity to be part of a community that celebrates their gifts. It will also help them to integrate more fully into the broader life of their community. Visit Website |
| M’akola Housing Society | West Shore Aboriginal Day Festival | 2017 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | First Nations, Children, Youth, Adults, Seniors | The West Shore Aboriginal Day Festival has been operating for the past three years. In 2017, more than 1,000 people attended and more than 100 volunteers supported the event. Before this festival was founded, there was no large community celebration on the West Shore for Aboriginal Day. The festival is open to everyone and all of its activities, food, and entertainment are free of charge, to remove barriers to participation. The event is hosted by eight Aboriginal-serving agencies, with participation from the Sooke School District and 10 local First Nations. Funding will support festival costs. Visit Website |
| Marie Esther Society (Mount. St. Mary Hospital) |
Safe transfer of individuals with physical disabilities | 2017 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Safety | Seniors, Disabled | At Mount St. Mary Hospital (MSMH), 200 residents have ceiling-mounted lifts in their rooms. Lifts allow caregivers to transfer residents to and from their bed to their sitting chair, wheelchair, or bathroom. They guarantee the resident’s safety, comfort, and dignity while being moved and repositioned, and reduce the risk of injury to care staff. Lifts should last 8-10 years: MSMH lifts are over 14-years-old and in need of replacement to ensure reliability. Funds to purchase 25 new lift motors will ensure vulnerable residents continue being safely transferred, allowing their participation in activities that reduce loneliness and isolation and improve quality-of-life. Visit Website |
| Oaklands Community Association | Mixed Allotment and Commons Community Garden in Oaklands (Phase 1) | 2017 | Grantee | Environment | Children, Youth, Adults, Seniors | With funding, this project will transform an underutilized lawn in Oaklands Park into 31 allotments and several communal garden beds, supplying fresh produce to local food initiatives such as the Oaklands Community Dinners. The garden will be a place of beauty and whimsy that is inviting to children, accessible to seniors and those with disabilities, and that fosters connections between neighbours. It will contribute to increased food security and capacity, especially for apartment dwellers in the Oaklands neighbourhood, and boost local biodiversity and pollinator populations. Visit Website |
| Octa Collective Society (artsREACH) | artsREACH In-School Program | 2017 | Grantee | Arts & Culture | Children, Youth | The artsREACH In-School program provides free 90-minute workshops in visual arts, dance, and theatre in public schools that serve the highest populations of low-income families in the Capital Region. Workshops are offered to kindergarten to grade 5 classes selected by school principals. Taught by professional artists, artsREACH fosters imaginative play, encourages individual creativity, and promotes collaborative teamwork. Classroom teachers learn new skills and techniques by observing artsREACH artist-instructors. Instruction and all materials are provided free of charge. The organization aims to deliver 263 workshops to over 20 schools during the 2017/2018 term: 128 Visual Arts, 100 Dance, and 35 Theatre. Visit Website |
| Our Place Society | Empowering Employment | 2017 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Economy | Adults, Seniors, First Nations, Disabled | This program supports homeless and vulnerable adults to enter the workforce through providing a combination of skills training, job placements and mental health supports. It supports adults over a long time period, through every stage of work readiness, harnessing all five senses in learning and popular education principles. The program is comprehensive, from pre-employment skills to employer support and follow-up. Empowering Employment is an innovative program that uses a delivery model specifically tailored to the unique community needs, replicating a successful model piloted in Winnipeg that builds networks with employers to help homeless adults earn a living income. Visit Website |
| Pacifica Housing Advisory Association | Virtues Youth Group Program | 2017 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Health & Wellness | Children, Youth | Virtues Youth Group is a program offered free and onsite to 100 children, ages 4-14, living in Pacifica Housing’s family housing complexes. Based on the internationally-renowned Virtues Project, this weekly program features 52 virtues such as confidence, generosity, integrity, respect, responsibility and thankfulness. Children enjoy arts and crafts, engage in physical activities, celebrate holidays, and go on field trips. Virtues Youth Group also includes cooking and gardening workshops that teach healthy living and foster children’ connectedness to their natural Environment. Children practice socially-appropriate behaviour that builds self-esteem and develops strong and healthy family relationships and friendships. Visit Website |
| Pandora Arts Collective Society | Wellbeing – From Studio to Community | 2017 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Youth, Adults, Seniors, Disabled | This project will offer twice weekly facilitated studio art sessions, focused on supporting adults struggling with mental health issues and any others who would find a regular, safe, understanding, and creative community important to their well-being. The project will affect 75 to 100 individuals over the year with 10 to 20 individuals participating in any single session. It will also offer several participant and community outreach experiences (exhibitions and workshops) that together will impact more than 300 community members. Visit Website |
| PEERS Victoria Resources Society | Peers Dinner Group Program – Culture, Education and Social Networking | 2017 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | Adults, First Nations | This project is targeted at two sub-populations served by Peers Victoria: Indigenous sex workers and indoor agency escorts. Each service population will be invited to take part in a monthly dinner group at Peers, which will consist of a community meal, guest speaker, and group discussion. The dinner group model aims to reach under-served populations who have particular needs that cannot be met through generalized programming at Peers. Group participants will meet with a range of community members and cultural leaders through the program, while also building community support and alliances and combating stigma and discrimination. Visit Website |
| Pender Island Child Care Society | Fostering Community and Family Relationships for Healthy Child Development | 2017 | Grantee | Getting Started | Children, Adults | This project will continue the successful Parents and Babes weekly drop-in program at the Dragonfly Child Care and Family Resource Centre. A trained facilitator provides a healthy snack, connects parents and children, offers educational toys and resources, and introduces island services. Funding will also support an eight-week attachment parenting course to assist parents in building healthy relationships with their children, helping to ensure healthy brain development. In addition, this project will give child care providers the opportunity to attend professional development courses about promoting resiliency in children. Visit Website |
| Pender Island Recreation & Agricultural Hall Association | Community Education Classes to Increase Environment, Belonging & Engagement | 2017 | Grantee | Environment | Adults, Seniors | This organization will partner with the non-profit Heartwood Folk School Society to develop and deliver Pender Island community-serving classes on three topics: 1) Sustainable Food Growing, including water systems, pollinator support, seed saving, fruit tree growing, regenerative agriculture, and food preservation; 2) Sustainable Energy Use, including conserving energy in how we move/eat/live, low-tech and high-tech energy device options to decrease carbon emissions; and 3) Belonging & Engagement, including classes to connect with local Indigenous teachers and participants, drop-in folk & popular dancing, and compassionate communication training. These classes will support Health & Wellness of Pender Island residents and the Environment. Visit Website |
| Peninsula Streams Society | Creating Young Stewards’ Environment Education Program | 2017 | Grantee | Environment | Children, Youth | Peninsula Streams Society delivers three annual Environment education programs to 1450 students in more than 13 Saanich Peninsula schools. Funding would support three programs: “Watershed and Salmon Life-cycle” (Gr. 2/3), “Connecting Kids to Nature” (Gr. 5) and “Creatures of Habitat” (Gr. 6/7), all of which engage students in hands-on, place-based learning at their schools and nearby green spaces. Students learn concepts of Environment sustainability from local experts and engage in ecological restoration and stewardship activities. Through these programs, Peninsula Streams Society engages students in educational experiences at least three times over the students’ elementary and middle school years. Visit Website |
| Ptarmigan Music and Theatre Society | Once Upon an Island: Building Community Through Storytelling | 2017 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | Seniors | This project will address growing concerns about seniors’ isolation through a seniors’ storytelling project that unites the Pender Island community through intergenerational engagement in storytelling. Funding will allow Ptarmigan to coordinate a series of inclusive gatherings with community partners, where seniors’ stories are told through song, music and spoken word, a night of storytelling on stage, stories filmed and shared online, and a series of senior-led community storytelling workshops for all ages. The project aims to empower seniors to share their stories and life experiences, thus creating intergenerational friendships, social connection and a lasting sense of identity and meaning. Visit Website |
| Ready to Rent BC Association | Expanding Supports for Successful Tenancies | 2017 | Grantee | Housing | Adults, Seniors | Ready to Rent’s RentSmart model combines education, certification and support to enable people to have successful tenancies and prevent housing instability. With over 2000 RentSmart graduates and 180 Community Educators, Ready to Rent is developing and piloting a digital platform to support successful tenancies. Based on years of experience, research, and best practice, this platform will include features that alleviate many common issues that often lead to housing instability. Integrating with the existing RentSmart telephone/text/instant messaging support, the platform will provide a comprehensive and cost effective method of supporting thousands to achieve successful tenancies and housing stability. Visit Website |
| Rocky Point Bird Observatory Society | Monitoring Migratory Bird Populations | 2017 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Environment | Youth, Adults | Birds are key indicators of the health and sustainability of the natural Environment. Rocky Point Bird Observatory’s ongoing monitoring project helps to assess whether natural or human-caused changes are negatively impacting natural spaces. Due to the anticipated increase of traffic in the Strait of Juan de Fuca, the scope of monitoring has expanded to include the seabirds that access this area. Additionally, the outreach program is growing and volunteer involvement is rapidly increasing. Funding is requested to support the expansion of the monitoring project, build upon the success of outreach, and improve the quality of volunteer engagement. Visit Website |
| Saanich Neighbourhood Place | Growing Together: Community Early Screening Project | 2017 | Grantee | Getting Started | Children | Coordinated by Saanich Neighbourhood Place, the Victoria Early Years Centre is concerned with the nearly 30% vulnerability rate of children entering Kindergarten in School District 61. Working with community partners and applying targeted strategies, this project will develop a community plan to ensure universal access to developmental and health screening for children ages zero to five. Screening will ensure that children have developmental and health concerns identified well before they reach Kindergarten, by strengthening and aligning community supports for families. Fundamental to the project is the formation of The Early Screening Network to advance sustainable systems-level change. Visit Website |
| Salt Spring and Southern Gulf Islands Community Services Society | Core Inn | 2017 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Youth, Adults, Disabled | Funding is requested to support an architectural and engineering assessment and improvement plan to revitalize the Core Inn, an essential hub of community service activity for Salt Spring Island. The property is an impressive three-story heritage building in the heart of Ganges that provides a home for youth services, services for the developmentally disabled, and the Second Harvest food recovery program. The building requires structural, safety, and energy efficiency upgrades to maintain functionality, as well as some upgrades to ensure that all of the great space in the building is used optimally. Visit Website |
| Salt Spring Island Farmland Trust Society | The Root: Building Community and Local Food | 2017 | Grantee | Economy | Children, Youth, Adults | The Root is a multi-functional food hub that will enhance local food security and sustainability by providing all-season, temperature-controlled storage for locally grown food as well as a commercial food processing kitchen, permaculture demonstration gardens, dry storage barn, and community seed saving vault. The Root will also provide food education for the community and food-related training, mentoring, and supported employment for youth. Construction on the Root building will begin in Fall 2017. Funds are requested to purchase and install equipment for the commercial kitchen as well as for water catchment installations to divert greywater used to wash produce. Visit Website |
| Saturna Island Marine Research and Education Society | Salish Sea Acoustic Monitoring & Educational Outreach Project | 2017 | Grantee | Environment | Youth, Adults, Seniors | SIMRES has one of the most advanced hydrophone systems in the world today and is monitoring the impact of human activity on Salish Sea’s marine ecosystem, particularly the endangered Southern Resident Orca and other at-risk marine species. This project will be using the data from the monitoring network along with additional information from collaborating individuals and organizations to produce an inventory of educational and outreach material. The project’s objective is to make a significant contribution to public awareness about the fragile ecosystem of the Salish Sea, and how threats to its whale populations can be mitigated. Visit Website |
| SeaChange Marine Conservation Society | Blue Grouse Open Classroom | 2017 | Grantee | Learning | First Nations, Youth | Created in 2004, EcoRowing is a hands-on, feet-wet marine science, ethno-botany, restoration and canoeing program for schools within the Capital Region. Funding will support the addition of an Indigenous science and language laboratory within the new Blue Grouse Open Classroom. This 12′ x 16′ floating classroom is a recent replacement to the ageing Tod Inlet Nature Float. Four (Saanich) youth will be prepared to teach traditional uses of plants, and to help guide students in the terrestrial restoration of Tod Inlet during the EcoRowing program days. Visit Website |
| Sierra Club of BC Foundation | Mentoring and Supporting CRD Teachers in Place-Based Outdoor Learning | 2017 | Grantee | Learning | Children, Youth, Adults | This pilot project will provide mentorship and support to K-8 teachers in School Districts 61, 62 and 63, providing them with knowledge, tools, and best practices for increased confidence in taking students outdoors for regular hands-on, place-based learning opportunities. An Environment Educator will work with 15 schools in the Capital Region to build their capacity for Environment education by leading place-based workshops for students and offering individualized support and mentorship to teachers in their school Environment. This will, in turn, cultivate the Environment stewards of tomorrow. The project includes monthly gatherings, bringing together and strengthening this community of practice. Visit Website |
| SingYourJoy Young Adult Chorus Society | Raising the Bar: Higher Performance and Commitment Goals for SYJ | 2017 | Grantee | Arts & Culture | Youth, Adults | This chorus has a proven track record of engaging hard-to-reach young adults aged 16-29, who are often socially disconnected, e-device oriented, and experiencing mental health challenges. SingYourJoy offers a combined learning, social, and community-building activity, free of charge, that enlivens the spirit and lifts the self-esteem of young people who face adversities. Funding would enable SingYourJoy to increase its impact with young adults by providing a longer rehearsal season, tackling a more challenging repertoire, and achieving a higher performance aesthetic in a more professional venue. Visit Website |
| Society for Kids at Tennis | Free Tennis Lessons For Disadvantaged Children & Youth in CRD | 2017 | Grantee | Sports & Recreation | Children, Youth | Working in conjunction with 40 community social organizations and schools, this program provides free tennis lessons to more than 2,000 children and youth. These children are selected by partner organizations and have disabilities, including Autism and Down Syndrome, or come from families with chronically low income. Benefits to the children include learning the fundamentals of physical literacy, which encourages a life-long interest and involvement with physical activity and sport. Funding for this project will support the free lessons, which are conducted in a manner that promotes social and emotional benefits, including improved self-confidence and better relationships. Visit Website |
| Society of St. Vincent de Paul of Vancouver Island | Enhancing Food Security in the Capital Region through the FSN | 2017 | Grantee | Standard of Living | Children, Youth, Adults, Seniors | The Food Share Network (FSN) is a collaboration between 50 non-profit agencies aligned around the vision of improving food access for the 50,000 food insecure individuals in the Capital Region. In 2018, activities will focus on facilitating the distribution of more than three million pounds of food through the Givefoodgetfood website and the Food Rescue project. Funding will support coordination of the Network, program expansion, development of a financial sustainability plan, and exploration of social enterprise opportunities. Visit Website |
| Society of St. Vincent de Paul of Vancouver Island | Equipping Community Toward Food Security | 2017 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Children, Youth, Adults, Seniors | This project takes advantage of the increasing availability of fresh perishable food due to the Food Rescue project and, through community engagement, extends the life of the food and provides healthy meals that benefit many people experiencing food insecurity within the St. Vincent de Paul system. Utilizing existing kitchen and food preparation space, recovered perishable food will be transformed into healthy meals that can be refrigerated or frozen, and turned into healthy snacks and smoothies for the children who attend onsite childcare. This program has the added benefit of building relationships, increasing food literacy and skills, and creating positive community. Visit Website |
| Sooke Family Resource Society | Prenatal Education and Outreach Program | 2017 | Grantee | Getting Started | Children, Youth, Adult | The Sooke Family Resource Society’s Prenatal Program provides pregnancy education, prenatal/postnatal support, and outreach through locally-accessible group and individual services for families from Sooke to Port Renfrew. The goal of the program is to support the overall health and well-being of new babies and their families. Participants gain prenatal/postnatal knowledge and confidence, increase protective factors for themselves and their baby, become more aware of community resources, and develop a shared sense of community. The program serves 30-65 pregnant women each year through 3-4 prenatal courses and over 250 one-to-one outreach sessions. Visit Website |
| Stigma-Free Society | Stigma-Free Zone Initiative (formerly Bipolar Babes Stigma Stomp Program) | 2017 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Youth | The Stigma-Free Society’s (formerly Bipolar Disorder Society of BC) Stigma-Free Zone Initiative is an exciting and effective educational initiative offered in Greater Victoria schools and in community. Presentations create awareness of the stigmas that exist in society, help youth develop an understanding of the challenges numerous people face, and encourage youth to foster acceptance of themselves and others. They also help individuals to manage their mental health by connecting them to effective community resources. In 2018, the Society plans to reach over 1500 Grades 7-12 students in up to 24 schools. Visit Website |
| Story Studio Writing Society | Creative Writing Programming for Schools with Vulnerable Student Populations | 2017 | Grantee | Learning | Children, Youth | Since 2012, Story Studio has helped over 5000 youth tell their stories while improving literacy skills. In 2018, Story Studio will build on its successful model for public elementary and middle schools, offering creative writing programming designed to build confidence, encourage creativity and improve communication skills in students. Each participating school will receive a week of workshops and events, plus teacher resources and individually bound books of student stories. Funding is requested to assist in subsidizing the cost of delivering programming to 950 youth, particularly in schools that are identified as having a high percentage of vulnerable students. Visit Website |
| Story Theatre Productions Society | The Library Club | 2017 | Grantee | Arts & Culture | Children | Story Theatre would like to produce a new touring show for their 2018-19 season. Tentatively titled “The Library Club”; it will be set in a library and will bring multicultural stories to life. Funding will support the work-shopping of the show, which includes a new set and props, masks and puppets, and a wireless microphone system in order to make its elementary school shows accessible to more children. Story Theatre believes that the use of wireless microphones will help students focus better in gyms, where the acoustics are notoriously poor. Visit Website |
| Surrounded by Cedar Child and Family Services | Culturally Informed Care Training for Caregivers Parenting Traumatized Children | 2017 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Health & Wellness | First Nations, Children, Youth, Adults | Based on research in Trauma-Informed Practice and Indigenous Modalities of Helping, caregiver training will address the daily challenges of parenting a child living with complex trauma. Funding for this project will support training programs that build caregivers’ capacity to help children and youth reduce symptoms of stress, enhance emotional and behavioural regulation, and foster cultural identity and attachment, in a culturally-appropriate manner. In addition, participants will learn cultural sensitivity and cultural safety in parenting Indigenous survivors of intergenerational trauma. Reduced symptoms of traumatic stress will improve the outcomes for children and families. Visit Website |
| The Sooke Philharmonic Society | 20th Anniversary Music Program | 2017 | Grantee | Arts & Culture | Adults, Seniors | The 2017-2018 season marks the Society’s 20th anniversary. This community Orchestra of 60 musicians and the 40-voice Chorus have a long-standing presence in Sooke and the West Shore. Funding would support the Music Program, which includes 8-10 concerts annually, with over 70 rehearsal sessions in preparation for these performances. Rehearsals take place every week throughout the year, with the season including a free concert in July, and two Christmas concerts. Funding is also requested to support the Sooke Harbour Chamber Music Workshop Program. Visit Website |
| The Victoria Youth Clinic Society | Cracking the Cocoon | 2017 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Youth | The vision of this project is to build community through an inclusive arts program that is responsive to the diverse experiences of youth served through the Victoria Youth Clinic, allowing youth to find their unique voice. The Clinic has been developing an art therapy program for the last few years. The need for a responsive arts program has been clearly identified through input from participating youth. Art therapy has proven successful as a fun tool to build community among participants, and has also proven successful as a means for youth to find their voice. Visit Website |
| Theatre SKAM Association | Fashion Machine 100 | 2017 | Grantee | Arts & Culture | Youth, Newcomers | This project is a collaboration between Theatre SKAM, the Inter-Cultural Association of Greater Victoria, the Royal BC Museum and The Makehouse sewing studio. It will engage 100 youth from diverse backgrounds over one month and connect them with professional artists in the fields of theatre, textiles, and photography. Participants will build skills in sewing, performance, and media and learn about impacts and opportunities in the fashion industry. The project culminates in a public showing where 25 audience members have their outfits re-made into wearable works of art. The project expands upon SKAM’s successful show “Fashion Machine”, which has toured internationally. Visit Website |
| Threshold Housing Society | Life Foundations for Youth at Risk of Homelessness | 2017 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Housing | Youth | The goal of the Life Foundations program is to provide at-risk youth with life skills that will prepare them for tenancy and other aspects of life. While transitionally housed, the youth build self-reliance so they can exit homelessness and avoid re-entry as adults. The basis of Life Foundations is to build practical skills and to ensure consistent engagement. The program’s engagement component ultimately builds the capacity of youth to become contributing members of the community. Four activities are at the core of the program: Ready to Rent, grief management, financial literacy, and anxiety management through creative engagement. Visit Website |
| Together Against Poverty Society | The ID Project | 2017 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Standard of Living | Adults | Possessing photo identification (ID) is a necessity of modern day life. Without official identification, individuals cannot access many government and community services and programs. With funding, volunteers will host a biweekly ID Clinic to help homeless and precariously-housed people apply for ID, improving their access to basic services and supports. Funds would support ID replacement costs, volunteer meals, and advertising. This project is a partnership between the Downtown Service Providers, Pro Bono Students Canada-University of Victoria Chapter, and others. Visit Website |
| Umbrella Society for Addictions and Mental Health | A better way: Community collaborations to support women with addictions | 2017 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Health & Wellness | Youth, Adults, Seniors | Umbrella has many years of experience helping individuals who struggle with substance use issues navigate multiple systems of care. Recent statistics indicate that women are not connecting with services through traditional methods. To establish and build healthy relationships with women in the community, Umbrella will collaborate with organizations such as Young Parents Support Network, HerWay Home and Victoria Women’s Transition House, as well as the wider community, to improve and support women’s health, wellness and recovery. Funding is requested to support the outreach team that will provide connection, education, counselling, and improve food security and access to health services. Visit Website |
| United Way of Greater Victoria | Connecting to bc211 for help and to help | 2017 | Grantee | Getting Started | Youth, Adults, Seniors | Outreach efforts will build public awareness of the 211 international network and bc211 locally. This transformational technology can connect people to social services for help or to help, through a 24 hour helpline and web portal, with access to 160 languages for translation needs, and web chat and texting response capabilities for immediate navigation assistance. Using 211 provides users with program referrals to local services through trained operators who are often social workers and librarians by background. Visit Website |
| Vancouver Island AIDS Society | SOLID Peer Navigation and Support Project | 2017 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Health & Wellness | Adults, Seniors, Disabled | Vancouver Island AIDS Society will partner with SOLID to develop and pilot peer navigation and support services for people with problematic substance use issues who are either experiencing or at-risk of homelessness. The project will offer training of peers with lived experience of substance abuse and/or homelessness and provide a range of supports, including accompaniment to appointments, navigation of social and non-profit services, advocacy, and capacity-building. The benefits of the project will include increased access to services, enhancement of individual self-determination, and improved health and well-being for participants. Visit Website |
| Vancouver Island Kids Klub Centre Society | Brown Bag Lunch Program | 2017 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Children | Since 2000, this program has offered a nutritious “Brown Bag” lunch to children in need at local elementary and middle schools in the Victoria, Saanich and Sooke School Districts. Lunches are offered at no cost to the school or families. During the 2016-2017 school year, this program provided 125 lunches daily, or 2625 lunches per month, to children who would otherwise be hungry at school. Funding will support program costs to provide daily school lunches from January 2018 through June 2019. Visit Website |
| Via Choralis Performance Society | Liebeslieder Waltzer (Brahms) and Madrigals | 2017 | Grantee | Arts & Culture | Youth, Adults | Via Choralis Performance Society is a high quality Arts & Culture organization that draws singers from the Capital Region to collaborate in a rare event that is both interesting intellectually and musically. The project will provide performance and musical educational opportunities to student vocalists, taking place in the Town of Sidney. It will also provide a unique repertoire that has not been performed in the Capital Region for some time, featuring four hands and one piano during the Liebeslieder Waltzer. Partial proceeds will be donated to Jeneece Place. Visit Website |
| Victoria Baroque Music Society | Baroque, music, concerts and outreach | 2017 | Grantee | Arts & Culture | Adults, Seniors | This project will increase the artistic and administrative capacity of the Victoria Baroque Music Society to allow for an enriched and expanded program of baroque music in Greater Victoria, as well as more streamlined administrative management of the organization, dedicated to those ends. The benefits that will accrue from this exercise in program and administrative development will be the expansion of audiences and greater appreciation in the community of baroque music and its remarkable quality, as well as its important place in the development of western musical culture. Visit Website |
| Victoria Choral Society | Performance of Beethoven’s Missa Solemnis Feb 11, 2018 | 2017 | Grantee | Arts & Culture | Adults, Seniors | Funding will produce the first-ever Victoria performance of Missa Solemnis by both the Victoria Choral Society and the Victoria Symphony. Considered to be one of Beethoven’s supreme achievements, this masterwork arguably equals or exceeds the Ninth Symphony in its depth, majesty, and demands on both the choir and soloists. This concert will be performed Sunday, February 11, 2018 at the Farquhar Auditorium, University of Victoria, and conducted by the Victoria Choral Society Music Director, Brian Wismath. Visit Website |
| Victoria Community Food Hub Society | Good Food Collective Impact Initiative | 2017 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Children, Youth, Adults, Seniors | The Good Food Network has come together so that all people in the Capital Region have access to healthy, local food and that the local food system will provide Good Food for generations to come. Good Food is food that is good for the planet, good for the producer, and good for the health and well-being of all. Funding will support the Good Food Strategy, a regional food system initiative to align resources and action for significant outcomes by 2025 in the areas of food literacy, food access, and local food economy, towards a vision of Good Food for all. Visit Website |
| Victoria Community Food Hub Society | Tsartlip First Nation Community and Family Garden Program | 2017 | Grantee | Environment | First Nations, Children, Youth, Adults, Seniors | The Family Garden program provides support for 60 Tsartlip households to build a backyard gardens and grow a variety of fruits and vegetables (of their choice). Staff offers supplies and mentoring to gardeners throughout the growing season. The Teaching Garden includes the children and parents who attend the infant-toddler and afterschool programs. The Garden is located next to the health center and programming includes traditional plants as food and medicine. The purpose of both programs is to build knowledge of and give access to healthy food. Hands-on education is vital to children and their families making healthy food choices. Visit Website |
| Victoria Compost and Conservation Education Society (Victoria Compost Education Centre) | Healing City Soils: Expanding the Soil Health Network | 2017 | Grantee | Environment | Adults, Seniors | Ensuring soil is healthy is the first step to any urban agriculture project, from backyard growing to community and boulevard gardening. Soil testing is expensive and the results can be confusing or disheartening, often creating a barrier to growing food. Funding for this project will provide free analysis of the region’s soils, adding two municipalities annually, to build on the virtual soil health map of the Capital Regional District, which highlights areas where heavy metals may need to be addressed before growing food and empowers people with the knowledge and skills to grow food safely and heal the soil. Visit Website |
| Victoria Conservatory of Music | Getting Started – Early Childhood Music Education Outreach | 2017 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Getting Started | Children | This project will expand the current VCM Music Library into a community-wide music library/resource centre accessible to all. In collaboration with School District 61, the project will open doors to the District’s extensive Choral Octavo collection. Both organizations’ annotated collections of scores will be available for loan to community groups. As well, VCM will launch a new free children’s Musical Story Time on-site in the VCM Library and at more than 40 satellite locations throughout Greater Victoria. Founded in 1964, the Victoria Conservatory of Music (VCM) has earned an outstanding reputation for quality in education, performance and music therapy. As a music school for the whole community, the VCM welcomes students of all ages and musical abilities, and teaches in all musical genres including classical, contemporary and music technology. Each year, over 4,500 students take part in an extensive array of disciplines including woodwinds, brass, percussion, keyboard, strings, voice, jazz, theory and composition, and programs such as music therapy, teacher training, early children’s music and children’s outreach programs, and Summer Music Academies. In addition, the VCM offers a two-year performance-oriented post-secondary diploma program in partnership with Camosun College. As a registered charity, the VCM relies on vital financial support to fund 35% of overall operating revenue to enrich the community with accessible music education and performance. Visit Website |
| Victoria Cool Aid Society | Cool Aid – Building Lives Through Work | 2017 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Economy | Adults | This initiative will provide employment and life skills as well as increase the availability of work opportunities for people who are homeless or at risk of homelessness. Funding will support those who face barriers to traditional employment models and will provide participants with required safety equipment, tools, and training to work in the trades and construction sectors. The project will include increased and strategic job development activities to attract employers in these sectors. Its’ aim is to increase employment opportunities while addressing the labour shortages faced in the top growth sectors of the regional economy. Visit Website |
| Victoria Hindu Parishad | Spiritual Pastoral Care Advancement | 2017 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | Youth, Adults, Seniors, | The Multi faith Summit intends to advance the spiritual life of BC residents, first by engaging adherents and members of each faith community on issues of mutual concern, and then to speak with one voice to governing bodies about spiritual issues faced by agencies such as hospitals and chaplaincy services. Most are publicly-funded programs under government oversight and regulations. Currently, there are no multi faith associations offering the government feedback and advice on policies and practices having to do with spiritual matters. The Multi faith Summit would offer such a sounding board. Visit Website |
| Victoria Hospice Society | Improving outcomes for patients on hemodialysis: Mapping the Patient’s Journey | 2017 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Health & Wellness | Adults, Seniors | In 2009, the BC Provincial Renal Agency published a series of recommendations aimed at improving end of life care for those living with kidney disease. Eight years later, however, significant gaps still remain in implementing a palliative approach for hemodialysis patients. Victoria Hospice plans to use a patient journey mapping model to better understand these gaps from the perspective of the patient, and use the modelling process to increase communications between stakeholders and, ultimately, improve quality of life for patients through better symptom management, more in-depth psychosocial and spiritual care, and providing greater assistance in navigating complex decisions. Visit Website |
| Victoria Immigrant & Refugee Centre Society | Welcome Gardens! | 2017 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Belonging & Engagement | Youth, Adults, Seniors, Newcomers, Disabled | This project promotes and facilitates the exchange and preservation of diverse horticultural knowledge and skills, enhances newcomers’ access to local food production resources, and supports the establishment of a culturally-diverse local food network. It is distinct in that it combines food production and social connection objectives to directly address food security for newcomers. The 130 participants from 16 countries range in age from 10 to 76 years. Participants increase their food literacy and share food cultures while realizing opportunities for social connection. Visit Website |
| Victoria Integration Society (Recreation Integration Victoria) | OneAbility: Community Partners Providing Leadership in Adapted Sports & Recreation | 2017 | Grantee | Sports & Recreation | Children, Youth, Adults, Seniors, Disabled | OneAbility is a group of community partners committed to improving access and inclusion to sport and physical activities for persons with disabilities throughout the Capital Region. Living an active lifestyle has been demonstrated as a key determinant in the overall health and well-being of persons with disabilities. Through collaborative leadership and a collective impact approach, OneAbility will build on the strengths of each community partner to create more accessible programming, identify program gaps, attract new participants, and deliver training so more programs are inclusive of people with disabilities. Funding will support the program coordination and the collaboration of community partners. Visit Website |
| Victoria Literacy Connection Society | Noisy Kids Expansion and Story Studio Collaboration | 2017 | Grantee | Learning | Children | This project will support children with literacy issues through the expansion of the Noisy Kids Reading Club after school program from 7 to 14 schools in Greater Victoria. Further, a partnership with Story Studio Writing Society will allow children to learn the basics of story construction and produce their own comic books and adventure stories through group and individual work. Story Studio will instruct the Noisy Kids teachers on narrative facilitation and follow up with the children throughout 2018. Children will be presented with their own individual Story Studio printed books. Visit Website |
| Victoria Native Friendship Centre | Youth Leadership Program Traditional Food Security, Harvesting and Cooking Program | 2017 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Youth, First Nations | This program is the hub to many urban Aboriginal/Indigenous youth in Greater Victoria. Food security programming focuses on cultural teachings with a strong emphasis on harvesting and preparing traditional foods. By engaging in traditional harvesting practices specific to Indigenous food systems, knowledge, and revitalization, youth develop understanding of cultural food security practices, which, in turn, supports their families and community to be more independent of urban food sources. Funding will support the Community Kitchen as well as cooking classes and workshops that teach harvesting and preparation of traditional foods and traditional medicines. Visit Website |
| Victoria Philharmonic Choir Society | JS Bach’s B Minor Mass Choral Concert | 2017 | Grantee | Arts & Culture | Youth, Adults, Seniors | The Victoria Philharmonic Choir (VPC) has become a vital part of the region’s musical culture. Support is required for a choral concert integral to the choir’s season: J.S. Bach’s B Minor Mass, a seminal work and audience favorite. In March 2018, the VPC will treat a Greater Victoria audience to a performance of the highest quality music featuring 80 voices, a professional orchestra, and internationally-notable soloists. Health and well-being benefits accrue to choristers, musicians, and audience: volunteers engage in activities promoting a sense of belonging and community, and an audience of almost 400 enjoys a financially-accessible cultural event. Visit Website |
| Victoria Restorative Justice Society (Restorative Justice Victoria) |
Strengthening Caseworker and Staff Capacity | 2017 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | Children, Youth, Adults, Seniors | The first element of this project will enhance the capacity of the organization’s two staff and 70+ volunteer caseworkers through five skill-building workshops delivered by respected practitioners. Restorative justice practitioners from across Vancouver Island will also be invited to participate. Workshops will focus on cultural sensitivity, difficult/challenging/complex client behaviour and needs, and a new restorative practices model. The second element extends a new staff position, the Complex Case Manager, which the BC government funded in 2016-2017. Funding will help the organization meet the need for, and continue the success of, this valuable position, which increases support for clients and volunteers. Visit Website |
| Victoria Sexual Assault Centre Society | Youth-Led Participatory Action Research Project to Address Cyber Violence | 2017 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Safety | Youth | According to Project Respect’s youth leaders, aged 12-21 years, the most prevalent form of violence in their lives is cyber violence, which is the expression of systemic violence enacted through social media, including controlling/manipulative messaging, non-consensual sharing of photos, rumours, and predatory behaviour. This project will engage youth leaders in implementing a broad-scale youth needs assessment that will become the basis for youth-designed workshops, training, and online learning tools to effectively address cyber violence in ways that are youth-centred and trauma-informed. First of its kind, this approach will challenge current fear- and shame-based education in schools. Visit Website |
| Victoria Single Parent Resource Centre (1UP) | Resiliency Stream: Building Strong and Healthy Single Parent Families | 2017 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Standard of Living | Children, Youth, Adults, Seniors | Resiliency Stream parenting and life skills courses improve the capacity of low income, isolated, and vulnerable single parents to care for themselves and their children, resulting in healthier and more resilient children, families, and communities. Funding is requested for the delivery of 24, four to eight week, strength-based, practical and peer-supported parenting and life skills courses to over 100 single parents. Single parents will gain confidence, self-efficacy and practical tools to empower them to move themselves and their children from a position of vulnerability to one of greater economic and family stability and resilience. Visit Website |
| Victoria Theatre Guild and Dramatic School (Langham Court Theatre) | Volunteer Development: Building Skills, Capacity & Community | 2017 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Arts & Culture | Youth, Adults, Seniors | This project will enhance and develop the skills of over 300 youth and adults in Greater Victoria through an expanded and comprehensive learning program focused on artistic skills and community engagement. Funding will support monthly workshops, a theatre immersion partnership with Central Middle School, a three week Musical Theatre Summer Intensive, and a playwright-in-residence program. The anticipated result of this program is an increase in the number of skilled volunteers available to support Langham Court Theatre as well as the expanding creative ecosystem of cultural resources across Greater Victoria. Visit Website |
| Victoria Therapeutic Riding Association | Program Funding – 2018 | 2017 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Health & Wellness | Children, Youth, Adults, Disabled | The Victoria Therapeutic Riding Association provides three unique therapeutic horseback riding programs for children and adults with physical, cognitive and social challenges. The Early Intervention Program aids in the physical and cognitive development of at-risk children ages 3 to 5 years; the Adaptive Riding Program helps meet physical and occupational therapy goals, provides safe and effective recreation and increases individuals’ overall well-being; and the Stable Management Program builds on the Adaptive Riding Program, incorporating stable management practices to develop personal responsibility, behavioral regulation, and time management skills. Funding would support over 90 students to participate in these programs. Visit Website |
| Victoria Women’s Transition House Society | Women’s Drop-In Support Group | 2017 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Health & Wellness | Adults | This support group is a psycho-educational counselling program that provides immediate access for women affected by domestic abuse. Facilitated by two specialized counsellors, each two-hour group session will explore topics such as abuse, healthy relationships, stress management, and communication skills, with guest speakers and yoga. This weekly program will be delivered for 48 weeks in partnership with the YMCA-YWCA of Vancouver Island. Childminding will be provided. Delivery of this program will help alleviate domestic abuse counselling waitlists and will support women leaving an emergency shelter or waiting to access individual counselling. The Victoria Women’s Transition House Society (VWTH) has been serving the Greater Victoria community for 43 years by providing emergency shelter, support, counselling and education to women, with or without children, leaving abusive relationships so that they can live free from the effects of domestic violence and abuse and rebuild their lives. We offer counselling support for children who witness abuse; support services for women proceeding through the justice system; third stage transitional housing and counselling for older women; community education and prevention; and a robust volunteer program that provides support to our 24-hour Crisis & Information Line as well as other agency needs. We operate from six sites, including the Emergency Shelter, our Community Office, a Third Stage Housing location, and police and courthouse locations. All our services are offered free of charge, and each year we serve over 2,000 women and 150 children & youth. Visit Website |
| Viva Youth Choirs Society of Victoria | Let the Youth Make Music | 2017 | Grantee | Arts & Culture | Youth | Celebrating its 30th year of making music, Viva Youth Voices exists to enrich the lives of singers, their families and the community. Viva believes that music should be available to all children and that this “artistic nutrition” promotes health through its emotional and physical expression. In 2016, Viva developed a program that invited two siblings to join Viva for the season, with tuition funded by a parent donor. Viva wishes to expand the program to waive tuition for eight additional children from low-income families, new Canadians, or refugee families, as a way to integrate children into the community through music. Visit Website |
| West Coast Children’s Choral Society | Prelude Choir Expansion | 2017 | Grantee | Arts & Culture | Children | Funding for this project will support the Prelude Choir, a non-auditioned ensemble for children aged seven to nine years. Last year’s pilot program was filled to capacity with 25 choristers. The organization would like to double the size of the Prelude Choir in 2018, offering up to 50 children in Greater Victoria the opportunity to be part of this program, introducing them to voice, sound, and music through fun and interactive group exercises, and empowering their future musical pursuits. Visit Website |
| WITS Programs Foundation | WITS Program Revitalization 2018 | 2017 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Safety | Children | This project will expand WITS Programs into more Victoria schools and build better organizational systems to improve program delivery and effectiveness. WITS Programs – Walk away, Ignore, Talk it out, Seek help – are literacy-based bully prevention and problem-solving programs delivered in elementary schools designed to help make cultural changes among children, teachers, parents and the community. These year-round programs are structured to compliment school curricula, while supporting teachers with the delivery of the program. Project funding will enable the WITS Programs Foundation to train more community leaders, engage thousands of children, and upgrade program delivery and evaluation systems. Visit Website |
| WorkLink Employment Society | Client Supports Project | 2017 | Grantee | Standard of Living | Adults | WorkLink Employment Society is contracted to provide BC Government employment services and programs to job-seeking clients. Some governmental financial assistance is available to purchase specific items towards clients’ participation, but needed purchases are often not eligible expenses. Individuals with no financial resources may be blocked from employment or programming by a relatively simple expenditure. The Client Supports project provides financial assistance where no other options exist, including food, shelter-related costs, phones, clothes, grooming, licenses, transportation, and training-related needs. This project will directly help approximately 80 clients reduce impoverishment by either securing work or enhancing job skills to compete for work. Visit Website |
| 1000×5 Children’s Book Recycling Project Society | 1000X5 Children’s Book Recycling Project Society (1000X5 Victoria) | 2016 | Grantee | Learning | Children | 1000×5 Children’s Book Recycling Society provides books for babies and preschoolers in a crucial early brain development and literacy stage. The goal is for every child to have a home library and have those books read to them 1000 times by age five, building lifelong language, literacy and social-emotional skills. Many families, due to poverty or unfamiliarity with early reading, own few or no books. Through the project, 1000 children receive three books monthly from 24 agencies. Eight thousand families at 30 Greater Victoria elementary schools donate books. Funds will buy books for babies and support the part-time Project Leader. Visit Website |
| Anglican Synod of the Diocese of BC | Welcoming Newcomers to Canada | 2016 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | Children, Youth, Adults, Seniors, Newcomers | The Refugee Program of the Diocese of British Columbia, through a Sponsorship Agreement with the Canadian Government, works with volunteers to privately sponsor and settle hundreds of individuals fleeing from countries where they are persecuted or escaping from war. Fifty-six sponsorship groups raise funds to bring families to Canada and, for twelve months, provide living expenses and accommodation. Volunteers orient them to language and settlement programs, health services and the Canadian workplace. The Diocese provides humanitarian assistance to refugees by welcoming them as newcomers, integrating them into our multicultural society, and encouraging them to become autonomous and self-reliant. Visit Website |
| Artemis Place Society | Trans and Gender Non-Conforming Inclusion Workshop Materials | 2016 | Grantee | Safety | Youth | The project goal is to build awareness and understanding of gender, sexuality and human rights issues to support trans and gender non-conforming inclusion in all programming and language at Artemis Place. Using a multiple modality approach the workshop materials emanate from lived experiences via existing video and include Indigenous perspectives, (currently non-existing). Student consultation and input in the project development ensures age-appropriate, and youth relevant materials. The project would be piloted, evaluated and refined at Artemis Place, benefiting all students, their children and staff. On completion, the final product would be made available to the broader communities via onmyplanet.ca. Visit Website |
| Arthritis Society – BC & Yukon Division | The Arthritis Society Education for Greater Victoria | 2016 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Health & Wellness | Adults, Seniors, Disabled | Through this project, The Arthritis Society will help people live well while creating a future without arthritis by providing free education and vital support. Participants will learn new tips, tricks and tools for better self-management, develop effective communication skills to better engage with their health team, and receive timely access to community resources. In the Capital Region, the Society will present roughly 70 educational opportunities, including a six-part workshop series, health fair participation, and specialist-led forums. Visit Website |
| Big Brothers/Big Sisters of Victoria Capital Region | Teen Mentoring | 2016 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Belonging & Engagement | Children, Youth | Teen Mentoring connects vulnerable elementary school students, deemed to potentially benefit from a mentoring relationship, with trained teen mentors. The program creates an opportunity for young students to have access to role models who support their social development. Schools identify children who are struggling socially and teen mentors meet with them on a weekly basis, sharing skills and experiences. Teens grow from the experience; they are engaged in their community and develop a deeper understanding for marginalized groups. Teen mentoring increases opportunities for community involvement while providing valuable supports to vulnerable children. Visit Website |
| Board of Education of School District No. 61 – Greater Victoria | View Royal Elementary Outdoor Classroom | 2016 | Grantee | Learning | Children | View Royal Elementary School wishes to build an outdoor classroom to help bring learning to life! The outdoor classroom will be a space where children and educators can gather to learn, experiment and explore in nature. Students will have a natural space to actively problem solve, collaborate with one another, and become stewards of the environment. Studies show both a direct correlation between outdoor classrooms and a child’s ability to focus as well as significant academic gains for students. The outdoor classroom will make learning more engaging and relevant and will allow students to apply their learning to the world around them. Visit Website |
| Board of Education of School District No. 62 – Sooke | Supporting Education for Children/Youth in Care in Partnership | 2016 | Grantee | Learning | Children, Youth | In Spring 2016, leaders from School District 62 and the Ministry of Children and Family Development committed to collaboratively developing a school-based social work team to work with one of British Columbia’s most vulnerable student populations: children and youth in care. Funding is requested to produce and implement a Developmental Evaluation Framework to support the initiative’s impact. This project will identify and document the initiative’s milestones, successes and challenges as well as student and organizational systems-level outcomes. Knowledge gained can be used by communities across the province seeking to undertake collaborative action to foster educational success for children and youth in care. Visit Website |
| Board of Education of School District No. 63 – Saanich | WSANEC Youth Media Project: Truth and Reconciliation | 2016 | Grantee | Arts & Culture | Youth, First Nations | The Youth Media Project: Truth and Reconciliation will engage Indigenous youth in School District 63 in a film project exploring residential schools and reconciliation through stories told by Elders in their communities. The project will be based in the traditional territory of the Peoples. It is a comprehensive project involving a variety of skills and experiences for the students involved, including film production, photography, videography, computer work, and public speaking. Students will also have the opportunity to work with local Elders practicing, creating opportunities for local voices and stories to be heard and told. Visit Website |
| Boys & Girls Club Services of Greater Victoria | Strengthening Foundations for Seven Generations | 2016 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Learning | Youth, First Nations | Raising the Grade is an interactive education program that allows youth to get homework help, meet new people, increase digital literacy and explore future options. The proposed expansion of this project includes adding a tutoring program for up to 30 Aboriginal youth attending Stelly’s Secondary School and running a literacy program at Bayside Middle School for up to eight Aboriginal youth. The agency wishes to remove financial barriers for high school students to access tutors, who will help them not only stay in school but achieve greater success with the ultimate goal of moving on to post-secondary education or training. Visit Website |
| Broadmead Care Society | Engaging Minds and Souls – Creative Arts at Broadmead Care | 2016 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Health & Wellness | Disabled, Adults | Broadmead Care’s Creative Arts program provides meaningful artistic activity to over 350 residents annually at the Veterans Memorial Lodge at Broadmead and at Nigel House. Program instructors are trained to use specialized tools and methods that encourage creativity and limitless ability, regardless of a resident’s cognitive, emotional or physical ability. Funding is requested to support the salaries of Creative Arts instructors who continually adapt this program for the unique and individual needs of its participants. Through art, this program creates opportunities for connection to self and community and is an essential part of Broadmead Care’s comprehensive care planning. Visit Website |
| Burnside Gorge Community Association | Youth Self Sufficiency (YSS) | 2016 | Grantee | Getting Started | Youth | The Youth Self Sufficiency (YSS) program supports youth in foster care, living independently under a Youth Agreement, or without supports as they transition into adulthood. Working with youth aged 17-19 for up to three years, YSS provides support in the areas of housing, employment, education, relationship and trust building, life skills, identity, and emotional healing. Funding is requested to support and expand the program, adding an outreach component to target youth unable to participate in YSS due to mental health concerns or other barriers. Youth Advisors will support these youth as they stabilize and develop program readiness. Visit Website |
| Camosun College Foundation | 2017 S’TENISTOLW Conference: cultural pre-conference and welcome | 2016 | Grantee | Learning | First Nations | The 2017 S’TENISTOLW Conference, hosted by Eye? Sqa’lewen, Camosun’s Centre for Indigenous Education and Community Connections, is a gathering for instructors, leaders and allies in the field of Indigenous adult education. Its purpose is to build relationships and networks of reciprocity – to share, learn and exchange with each other. Funding is requested for a cultural pre-conference and welcome, hosted in collaboration with the Songhees Nation, which will ground the conference in relationship to place, confirming the intention of Eye? Sqa’lewen (good heart, good mind, good feelings) and Na’tsa’maht (unity and collective vision), a gathering place on Camosun’s Lansdowne campus. Visit Website |
| Canadian Diabetes Association | Walk and Talk: Next Steps | 2016 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Adults, Seniors | In a 10-minute office visit, doctors are unable to effectively and efficiently address every need of their patients who have diabetes and other chronic conditions. The current 8-week “Walk & Talk” program helps to address this gap by providing further education on prevention, self-management, and complications in a supportive environment. In partnership with local physicians and patient participants, “Walk and Talk: Next Steps” will involve a formal evaluation of the existing program. The goal is to gather informative data to demonstrate the value and economic implications of early intervention and better self-management, to build greater capacity and help more people. Visit Website |
| Canadian Heritage Arts Society (Canadian College of Performing Arts) |
Theatre and Equipment Upgrades | 2016 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Arts & Culture | Youth, Adults, Seniors | The Canadian College of Performing Arts (CCPA) offers quality training in a broad spectrum of skills to prepare students for careers in the performance arts locally, nationally and internationally. The CCPA is entering its 19th season and is looking to make needed upgrades to its Performance Hall. The Performance Hall is widely used by both its students and the public. Upgrades will improve the theatre experience with more comfortable seats and accessible washrooms. The CCPA will also replace its theatre drapes, enhancing light and ventilation, and its dance floor, improving dancer safety. Visit Website |
| Canadian Light Music Society | Palm Court Light Orchestra 30th Anniversary Season | 2016 | Grantee | Arts & Culture | Adults, Seniors | The Palm Court Light Orchestra is entering its 30th anniversary season. The Orchestra wishes to present two afternoon concerts in Oak Bay and Sidney, celebrating the Orchestra’s achievements and acknowledging its seniors audience, some of whom were present at its first concert in 1987. It is the only professional orchestra in Canada performing palm court music, a genre of light orchestral music originating in the early part of the 20th century and part of Victoria’s arts and cultural scene until the early 1950s. Visit Website |
| Canadian National Institute for the Blind | Ensuring Accessibility for British Columbians Living with Vision Loss | 2016 | Grantee | Standard of Living | Children, Youth, Adults, Seniors, Disabled | Canada is both prosperous and technologically advanced yet many Canadians living with vision loss are excluded from social and economic opportunities. There is a lack of skills training and support resulting in unemployment for 65% of working age adults with vision loss and 50% earning less than $20,000 per year. CNIB’s project, Ensuring Accessibility for British Columbians Living with Vision Loss, delivers assistive technology, training and vital Post Vision Loss Rehabilitation Therapy. This project seeks to eliminate the equipment wait list, meet the demand for services and instill the skills and confidences required to gain employment, stay active and live independently. Visit Website |
| Canadian Red Cross Society – Western Zone | HELP: Keeping Victoria Seniors Safe as They Recover At Home | 2016 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Adults, Seniors, Disabled | Funding will purchase basic mobility and home safety equipment, including wheelchairs and walkers, which will be available for free or by-donation loan from the Red Cross HELP Office in Victoria. Funding will also purchase hundreds of replacement parts in the coming year. This project will allow the Red Cross to meet the current service levels (roughly 14,000 pieces of equipment annually) that will keep all residents comfortable and safe in their homes as they recover from illness or surgery. Visit Website |
| Capital Mental Health Association | Program for the Education and Enrichment of Relational Skills (PEERS) | 2016 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | Youth, Adults | In their recovery from mental illness, young adults 19-30 years of age face significant barriers not addressed by traditional interventions. Chief among these are developing and maintaining a supportive social network and a sense of belonging. PEERS is a sixteen-week, evidence-based program developed by Dr. Elizabeth Laugeson that can be used by young adults recovering from mental illness to improve social skills and interaction with peers. Clients and their social coach (a friend or family member) participate in separate, concurrent groups. Areas addressed include dating, conversation, peer pressure, electronic communication, bullying/teasing, good sportsmanship, and having appropriate get-togethers with friends. Visit Website |
| CFB Esquimalt Military Family Resource Centre | Celebrating Diversity of the Military Family | 2016 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Belonging & Engagement | Children, Youth, Adults, Seniors | Based on a 2013 Military Ombudsman report assessing the wellbeing of Canadian military families and on community engagement with local military families, Esquimalt Military Family Resource Centre is seeking funds to continue the “This is My Family” campaign. The campaign’s aim is to enhance community integration and educate community partners about the unique nature of the military family lifestyle and the diversity of military families. Funding is requested to support the creation of images and communication tools to reinforce the definition of the modern military family, enhance community integration, and encourage a greater sense of belonging. Visit Website |
| Child Abuse Prevention and Counselling Society of Greater Victoria (Mary Manning Centre) | Raising Happy Kids | 2016 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Children, Youth, Adults | Raising Happy Kids promotes health and wellness through affordable access to group counselling services for over 30 parents and families affected by abuse. This project focuses on practical parenting skills, mutual support, self care and resiliency skill development. Through art therapy, relaxation techniques, role play, and discussion, families will learn about safety planning, child development, bullying prevention, loss and trauma, and emotional regulation. The program is cost effective, delivery is timely, and results include increased protective factors for children and youth through improved parenting and support networks. Visit Website |
| Communica: Dialogue and Resolution Services Society | Re-entry Mediation Delivery | 2016 | Grantee | Safety | Adults | Despite research indicating that preservation of strong family relationships reduces the likelihood of recidivism, relationship maintenance is not generally supported within the correctional system: inmates are incarcerated far from their families, visits with family members are uncertain, and family members don’t always understand one another’s experiences. As a result, inmate families may be ill-equipped to support a successful release, and recidivism may occur. Re-entry Mediation Delivery supports the preservation of strong family connections by providing inmate families with mediated dialogue processes combining mediation and restorative practices, giving closure to past events and building practical, concrete plans for a successful release. Visit Website |
| Cook Street Village Activity Centre Society (New Horizons) | Sharing Circles | 2016 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | Youth, Adults, Seniors, First Nations, Newcomers | The Cook Street Village Activity Centre (CSVAC) believes in diversity of cultures and generations. Sharing Circles will provide a place where everyone will be a learner and teacher by celebrating diversity, gaining greater awareness and acceptance, and breaking the cycle of isolation. The CSVAC knows that finances can be a barrier to participation so keeping costs low is essential. Sharing Circles will work closely with schools, non-profits, and local groups to celebrate diversity through art, music, storytelling and food. This will lead to a stronger sense of community and greater awareness of the wonderful people that make up the community. Visit Website |
| Disabled Sailing Association of BC – Victoria Branch | Extended Sailing Program for People with Disabilities (Spring and Fall) | 2016 | Grantee | Sports & Recreation | Children, Youth, Adults, Seniors, Disabled | Sailing is a very normalizing activity where participants with disabilities say they experience their greatest sense of freedom. Joystick and Sip ‘n’ Puff technologies allow people with even very high spinal cord injuries and neuromuscular disabilities to sail independently. Each year, feedback from participants reflects a desire for a longer sailing season. The Disabled Sailing Association of British Columbia, Victoria Branch, would like to hire instructors to increase the length of the sailing season to include the spring and fall, thereby increasing sailing opportunities for people with disabilities. Visit Website |
| Disaster Aid Canada | Hygiene Kits to 10 local shelters in the CRD | 2016 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Youth, Adults, Seniors | The Soap for Hope program will meet the hygiene needs of ten shelters in the CRD. In 2015, 40 volunteers processed over 70,000 bars of used soap and hygiene products; six local shelters received hygiene products; and usable products were diverted from landfills. The program has expanded to divert items such as linens, bedding and pillows and redistributes these into shelters and transitional homes. Funding is requested to expand the reach of this successful program to fully meet the requested needs from shelters. Visit Website |
| Downtown Blanshard Advisory Committee | Recreational Engagement Program | 2016 | Grantee | Sports & Recreation | Children, Youth | The Recreational Engagement Program (REP) engages youth 10-18 years of age in the Hillside/Quadra neighbourhoods and surrounding area in recreational activities. The REP will give youth who are living in poverty an opportunity to play sports, learn new skills, and receive emotional support. Quadra Village Community Centre will host two weekly recreational activities such as soccer, dodge-ball, floor hockey and other activities that youth have shown interest in. The REP’s outreach worker will work with youth to provide emotional support, break down barriers to activities, and ensure safety for all youth in the program. Visit Website |
| Galiano Club | From the Kitchen to the Community | 2016 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | Children, Youth, Adults, Seniors | This integrated community food program reaches a large percentage of Galiano Island’s population through Soup and Bread lunches, Games Nights accompanied by meals, and school lunches. The requested funding would increase the frequency of Soup and Bread luncheons and school lunches from semi-monthly to weekly. Funding would also provide an opportunity to see if these initiatives can be self-sustaining. Many people in the community rely upon these meals and corresponding opportunities for social interaction. As volunteers are the essential component in the success of these initiatives, this request would also invest in the development and support of program volunteers. Visit Website |
| Galiano Conservancy Association | Galiano Community Food Forest: Growing Ecological and Social Sustainability | 2016 | Grantee | Environment | Children, Youth, Adults, Seniors | Designed, built and planted in 2015, the Galiano Community Food Forest is now a thriving community asset. Along with providing access to land and locally-produced organic food, the Food Forest has begun to serve as a living classroom for educational groups and workshop participants. The next phase of this project will improve ecological and social sustainability by developing and maintaining the Food Forest with new elements such as a honeybee hive and watering system. Further, the Galiano Conservancy Association will continue to develop this novel social enterprise through educational, culinary and academic partnerships. Visit Website |
| Garry Oak Ecosystem Recovery Team Society | Back to Our Roots Gardening for Nature Project | 2016 | Grantee | Environment | Adults, Children, Youth, Seniors | The Back to Our Roots Gardening for Nature Project engages residents in Environment by creating buffers around, and habitat patches between, parks that have endangered ecosystems and rare species. Expert botanists will mentor landowners as they develop “naturescaping” projects that use native plants and benefit wildlife, especially birds and pollinator insects. Participants are supported with on-site guidance and extensive printed and on-line resource materials. Stewardship agreements and a tiered certification component foster commitment and require participants to use environmentally-responsible gardening practices. The project also encourages volunteer involvement in park stewardship and recruitment of neighbours to the project. Visit Website |
| Greater Victoria Coalition to End Homelessness Society | Peer Housing Support Project | 2016 | Grantee | Housing | Children, Youth, Adults, Seniors, Disabled, First Nations | The Peer Housing Support Project is a community-driven project to bring those transitioning from homelessness to housing together with experiential peer supporters. These supporters assist in navigating available resources and promote successful transition to long-term housing. The next step of the project is to hire two part-time Peer Coordinators in order to support the continued engagement of people with lived experience of homelessness in guiding, shaping and developing the peer program development process. Peer Coordinators will also support the work of developing collaborative partnerships with agencies and people with lived experience, and develop a program framework and training manual. Visit Website |
| Greater Victoria Coalition to End Homelessness Society | Aboriginal Coalition to End Homelessness: Strategic Plan Priorities | 2016 | Grantee | Housing | First Nations, Children, Youth, Adults, Seniors, Disabled | In 2015, the Greater Victoria Point in Time Count identified that 36.2% of those experiencing homelessness were of Aboriginal ancestry. The Aboriginal Coalition to End Homelessness (ACEH) brings leadership and expertise to define problems and solutions through an Indigenous lens and to address Aboriginal housing and homelessness. The ACEH has developed a five-year Strategic Plan and Protocol Agreement to be adopted at its first AGM in October 2016. Funding requested will support the continued development of the ACEH in the implementation of the Strategic Plan priorities targeted to shelter/housing, governance/policy/resources, support services, and community relations. Visit Website |
| Greater Victoria Eldercare Foundation | Resilient Buildings and Streets | 2016 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | Seniors | Resilient Buildings and Streets strengthens neighbour-to-neighbour connections and relationships that lead to sharing of resources and skills as well as cooperation around common neighbourhood interests or concerns. The program provides orientations, a toolkit of diverse activities, peer mentors, networking, and small grants. This expansion from the 2012-2015 pilot phase will focus on building a Partners Table as a community of practice for neighbour-to-neighbour connectivity, and designing and distributing an expanded toolkit with guidance on emergency preparedness, intergenerational relationships and supports, community safety, and engagement in apartments and condominiums (vertical streets). The program will also be expanded across Greater Victoria. Visit Website |
| Greater Victoria Housing Society | Balmoral Garden Court Re-Design Project | 2016 | Grantee | Standard of Living | Children, Youth, Adults, Seniors, Disabled | Balmoral Garden Court is an inner-city building that provides affordable housing for low-income seniors, families, and adults with disabilities. The Balmoral Garden Court Re-Design Project is an initiative to enhance the quality of life of residents by creating friendly, bright community spaces where people feel welcome and secure. Enhancements and refurbishments include replacing the existing bike racks, installing a weather-proofed bike shelter, refurbishing the family area with interactive walls to encourage playful learning, and adding toy storage and children’s furniture. Floor numbers will also be painted/installed outside of the elevators on every floor, improving accessibility. Visit Website |
| Green Teams of Canada | Innovative Hands-on Environmental Education and Eco-restoration Volunteering in Greater Victoria | 2016 | Grantee | Environment | Youth, Adults, Seniors | The Greater Victoria Green Team (GVGT) will organize 60 hands-on environmental education and restoration volunteer activities across the Capital Regional District, engaging 1200 community members including 200 youth and at-risk youth. In 2015, the GVGT collaborated with 46 environmental/stewardship groups and municipalities, engaged 1466 volunteers (3,282 volunteer hours) and restored 10,200 square metres of habitat in 45 natural areas. The GVGT will build on their successful volunteer model by implementing a leadership workshop and offering new youth-focussed learning activities, including building nest boxes, mason bee houses, and bat boxes. Visit Website |
| Habitat Acquisition Trust | Community Conservation Program | 2016 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Environment | Adults | The Community Conservation Program permanently conserves natural areas through legal land agreements, community restoration, and stewardship activities. Habitat Acquisition Trust will work with landowners, dedicated volunteers and conservation partners to permanently protect and restore 25 hectares of natural areas that host rare and endangered species and ecosystems. This program will also bring together Victoria’s conservation community to collaborate and create positive outcomes for local environmental issues. Diverse interest groups from around the region will participate in workshops and speaker sessions to discuss innovative conservation planning tools and help to coordinate conservation strategies among local governments and environmental organizations. Visit Website |
| Haliburton Community Organic Farm Society | Haliburton Farm Ecofarm School | 2016 | Grantee | Learning | Adults | The Haliburton Community Organic Farm Society Ecofarm School will provide hands-on training in growing healthy food using sustainable small-scale, certified organic production practices, and applied ecosystem restoration for organic farms. Building on existing internships, this project will expand local capacity to produce food and initiate financially-sustainable ongoing practicum delivery. Experiential knowledge/skills for certified organic food production; environmental education about ecosystems and biodiversity; and critical interrelationships among environment, food, and human health will be supported through lectures by qualified instructors. The experience will include on-farm biodiversity enhancements and restoration of endangered Garry Oak and wetland ecosystems of Southern Vancouver Island. Visit Website |
| Hope in Shadows Inc. | Hope in Shadows and Megaphone Victoria Vendor Coordinator | 2016 | Grantee | Standard of Living | Adults, Seniors | The Victoria Vendor Coordinator is a part-time position to recruit new homeless and low-income vendors in Victoria to sell the Hope in Shadows calendar and Megaphone magazine. This project will provide vendors with the skills, tools, training and support to improve their sales, better manage their finances and create stronger interpersonal and communication skills with their clients. With a 12% poverty rate in the region and more than 1,000 homeless individuals in Victoria, this project will provide people experiencing poverty and homelessness a much needed low-threshold employment opportunity. Visit Website |
| InspireHealth Society | InspireHealth’s Supportive Cancer Care Programs & Classes | 2016 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Adults, Seniors | InspireHealth offers a unique evidence-based approach to patient-centered supportive cancer care. The program focuses on transforming the fear and anxiety associated with a cancer diagnosis into empowering self-care and greater levels of health and personal responsibility. Physicians, nutritionists, exercise therapists, and clinical counsellors work with patients to optimize the body’s healing potential and integrate healthful nutrition, appropriate exercise, and emotional/immune support. In February 2015, with the support of the Victoria Foundation, InspireHealth was able to remove the membership fee and provide supportive cancer care services free of charge. Funding is requested to expand the program by increasing membership. Visit Website |
| Intrepid Theatre Company Society | SPOTLIGHT CENTRE!: Equipment and package upgrade for the Metro Studio | 2016 | Grantee | Arts & Culture | Children, Youth, Adults, Seniors | The Metro Studio is a busy 175-seat live venue that is the only performance space of its size in Victoria. Over the last 10 years, it has gone from a gymnasium fitted with used equipment, to an increasingly state-of-the-art space able to meet the needs of the community it serves. To package the Metro as a completely professional space, it requires new soft-goods (black curtains, white projection surface), a follow spot, and a venue calendar software update. The upgrade will better serve the 500 community and cultural productions and 50,000 audience members who rely on the space each year. Visit Website |
| Island Sexual Health Society | Breaking Down Barriers: Educating and Empowering at risk Youth | 2016 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Youth | Island Sexual Health Society’s Education Program supports a preventative and comprehensive approach towards healthy sexual decision-making and choice. As advocates in the community, the Society works to strengthen the components necessary to ensure that children, youth, parents and members of diverse community groups have the skills essential for learning, promoting, and practicing positive and healthy sexuality. In response to identified need, funding will support expanded programming to meet the unique needs of male-identified participants, a population that has traditionally been absent from sexual health programming and care. Visit Website |
| James Bay Health & Community Services Society (James Bay Community Project) | Exploring the need for childcare | 2016 | Grantee | Getting Started | Children | There is a lack of affordable and high quality childcare spaces for families in Victoria. This project will research best practices and the viability of setting up childcare, including start up costs, staffing requirements, pricing models, and comparison with services that are currently available. High-quality childcare benefits children and families: when children get a good start in life, their development is supported. In addition, it can support families to return to work, benefiting physical and mental health. Well-run childcare directly meets the needs of the local community. Visit Website |
| Kaleidoscope Theatre Production Society | The Little Prince – Bilingual version | 2016 | Grantee | Arts & Culture | Children, Youth | In March 2017, Kaleidoscope Theatre for Young People will produce a bilingual (English/French) production of the timeless classic “The Little Prince”. Building on the success of its recent workshop of an English-only version at its 4th annual Family Theatre Festival, Kaleidoscope will scale up the show for presentation at the McPherson Playhouse. In addition to Kaleidoscope’s traditional school and family audiences, “The Little Prince” will be available at no charge to under-served audiences in the community. Kaleidoscope plans to tour this production up island during the 2017/2018 season. Visit Website |
| Leadership Victoria Society | Deepening Our Roots: Renewing the Community Leadership Development Program | 2016 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Belonging & Engagement | Adults | For 16 years, Leadership Victoria has offered its flagship Community Leadership Development Program (CLDP) to emerging leaders throughout Greater Victoria. Attracting 20-24 participants per year from private, government, and non-profit sectors, the CLDP employs a powerful pedagogical blend of theoretical and applied learning, culminating in team Community Action Projects to benefit local charities. The CLDP has evolved organically, as research in community leadership has expanded and learner needs have changed. Leadership Victoria will apply current learning in pedagogy, leadership, impact measurement and evaluation to implement a system for ongoing program renewal. Visit Website |
| Living Edge Community Church | Quadra Village: food equality capacity building | 2016 | Grantee | Standard of Living | Children, Youth, Adults, Seniors | The Living Edge Community operates as a food hub and community dinner organization for people in the Hillside-Quadra neighbourhoods and surrounding area who are living in poverty. Access to rescued food from various food banks and generous local food suppliers allow for distribution of food through a free Sunday Community Dinner at CDI College and a free Marketplace at Quadra Village Community Centre, where fresh produce and high protein foods are available. Funding will support a program evaluation, volunteer drive, outreach activities, community events, and a client survey. Visit Website |
| Marie Esther Society (Mount. St. Mary Hospital) |
Room to Care | 2016 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Health & Wellness | Seniors, Disabled | Mount St. Mary Hospital has 184 private rooms and eight double rooms for vulnerable members of our community, currently ranging from 44 to 102 years of age, who require complex care. Funding is requested for improvements to residents’ rooms and furniture. Currently, large holes and gouges in the walls, damaged heater covers, and slippery, damp-smelling bathroom floors all impact the health and well-being of residents. Residents’ quality of life and the safety of the residents, friends, families, and staff will be improved by upgrades and repairs, leading to residents feeling respected and maintaining hope and dignity. Visit Website |
| Mayne Island Conservancy Society | Priority Ecosystems Restoration Project | 2016 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Environment | Adults | The Mayne Island Conservancy Society will restore sensitive ecosystems of conservation priority on Mayne Island, including at Edith Point, Crane Point, Henderson Hill, Beechwood Drive and Mt. Parke. Working across property boundaries will allow for the formation of continuous restoration sites based on best practices and ecological integrity rather than property ownership. This is essential for managing invasive species from a re-introduction and seed spread perspective, and for creating all habitat features necessary for the survival of native species. This project contributes to the goals outlined in the 2015 Coastal Douglas Fir Conservation Strategy. Visit Website |
| Move Adapted Fitness and Rehabilitation Society of BC | Therapeutic Exercise Program | 2016 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Disabled | The Therapeutic Exercise program seeks to expand its rehabilitation services to support an additional 40 people with disabilities living in the Capital Regional District. The program provides individualized gym programs, full access to MOVE’s specialized gym equipment, weekly one-on-one athletic therapy support, group exercise programs, and social engagement activities. MOVE’s facility provides an accessible, adaptable, safe and inclusive space where people with disabilities who are on low, fixed incomes can exercise with an athletic therapist and trained volunteers. Exercise is essential to regaining health, maintaining independence, combating the risk of secondary conditions, and rebuilding self-esteem, confidence, and social engagement post-injury. Visit Website |
| Mustard Seed Street Church | Mustard Seed Street Church- Connecting People and Food | 2016 | Grantee | Standard of Living | Children, Youth, Adults, Seniors | The Connecting People and Food Project will expand on three key activities to reach food insecure populations: a farm gleaning project, in partnership with LifeCycles; the Neighbourhood Hamper Delivery Program; and the GiveFoodGetFood website, supporting food distribution to 32 agencies working with vulnerable communities. Funding is requested to support the continued partnership with the farm gleaning project, which provided the Mustard Seed with 11,549 pounds of locally-grown produce last year; to expand the Neighbourhood Hamper Delivery Program from nine to 12 agencies; and to increase the number of agencies using the GiveFoodGetFood.ca website. Visit Website |
| Nanaimo Association for Community Living | Life Long Learning Expansion | 2016 | Grantee | Learning | Adults, Disabled | NACL’s Life Long Learning Program began in 2012 with the premise of fulfilling the educational needs for people with developmental disabilities in the mid-Vancouver Island region in the areas of employment readiness, personal and social development, building independence/life skills, community engagement, academics, citizenship, bus training, and the diversity of the global community. Life Long Learning currently has a limited capacity of 5:1 (students-to-staff) teaching hundreds of measurable learning objectives. This project will increase staffing in order to expand the number of student participants in this much-needed program; in turn, resulting in more independent and engaged citizens and employees. Visit Website |
| Northwest Wildlife Preservation Society | Wildlife in Schools | 2016 | Grantee | Environment | Youth | Northwest Wildlife Preservation Society (NWPS) provides free wildlife education programs to youth in Greater Victoria schools. In 2015, the Society reached over 2000 young people, with some participants going on to set up wildlife clubs and beach clean ups. The aim of the Wildlife in Schools program is to inspire and create a generation of environmental stewards, connecting participants with their community and giving them a sense of belonging whilst working towards Environment. Funding is requested to meet the high demand of local schools to provide more young people with opportunities to learn about their local environment. Visit Website |
| Oak Bay Volunteer Services Society | Volunteer Engagement 40th Anniversary | 2016 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Belonging & Engagement | Adults, Seniors, Disabled | Oak Bay Volunteer Services provides direct one-to-one volunteer services to Oak Bay residents in need. While honouring its upcoming 40th anniversary, the organization will look to expand outreach to attract new volunteers. Volunteer engagement will also be expanded through the provision of workshops and other training opportunities. The overall goal will be to provide much needed volunteer services to help individuals maintain independence, improve quality of life and reduce social isolation. Both volunteers and clients will benefit through an improved sense of belonging. Visit Website |
| Octa Collective Society (artsREACH) | artsREACH In-School Program | 2016 | Grantee | Arts & Culture | Children, Youth | The artsREACH In-School Program provides free 90-minute workshops in visual arts, dance, and theatre through public schools serving the highest populations of low-income families in the region. Workshops are offered to Kindergarten through Grade Five classes selected by school principals. Taught by professional artists, artsREACH fosters imaginative play, encourages individual creativity, and promotes collaborative teamwork. Classroom teachers learn new skills and techniques by observing artsREACH artist-instructors. Instruction and all materials are provided free of charge. The artsREACH program aims to deliver 225 workshops to 3000 children in 20 schools from January to June 2017. Visit Website |
| Our Place Society | Securing Food for Greater Victoria’s Most Vulnerable Citizens | 2016 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Standard of Living | Adults, Seniors, First Nations, Disabled | Our Place is the largest meal provider for the Capital Region’s most vulnerable citizens. The program has grown to serving 1,800 meals per day (50% increase over four years). To ensure safe storage of an increasing volume of perishable food donations arriving daily to meet increased demand, refurbishment and expansion of the refrigeration system is required. Funding is requested to purchase an additional walk-in cooler and refurbish the existing walk-in cooler system. Hundreds rely on Our Place for their nutritional needs, and refrigeration is critical in continuing to provide food security for this vulnerable population. Visit Website |
| Pacific Training Centre for the Blind Society | Blind People in Charge | 2016 | Grantee | Standard of Living | Adults, Disabled | The Blind People in Charge program offers a two day per week program for blind adults in Victoria. Blind instructors and mentors serve as role models, teaching the basics of independence and blindness-specific employment-readiness skills such as Braille, adaptive technology, cane travel, public transportation, cooking, and other life skills. The program connects participants with community resources, such as housing and financial aid; focuses on a positive approach to blindness; and uses an empowering style of teaching, where blind people learn to take charge of their own lives. Training of this nature has a proven record of creating successful outcomes. Visit Website |
| Parish Of Pender And Saturna Islands | Pender Reconciliation Initiative 2017 | 2016 | Grantee | Arts & Culture | First Nations, Youth, Adults, Seniors | The 2017 Pender Reconciliation Initiative, key elements of which are the language workshop and 13 Moon Calendar installation, is designed to promote recognition and respect for culture through community engagement and partnership. This workshop will provide an introduction to the language revival initiative and the role that it plays in reinforcing the cultural identity of the Peoples. The 13 Moon Calendar codifies essential elements of culture and illustrates the interrelationships among these elements. This project will promote a growing partnership between the Tsawout and Pender communities. Visit Website |
| Peninsula Streams Society | ‘Creating Young Stewards’ Environmental Education Project | 2016 | Grantee | Environment | Children, Youth | Peninsula Streams Society delivers three annual environmental education programs to 1450 students at more than 13 schools on the Saanich Peninsula. These programs, “Watershed and Salmon Life-cycle” (Grades 2/3), “Connecting Kids to Nature” (Grade 5), and “Creatures of Habitat” (Grades 6/7), engage students in hands-on, place-based learning at their schools and nearby green spaces. In this way, Peninsula Streams Society engages students in educational experiences at least three times over the students’ elementary and middle school careers. Students learn concepts of Environment from local experts and engage in ecological restoration and stewardship activities. Visit Website |
| Power to Be: Adventure Therapy Society | Wilderness School | 2016 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Youth | Wilderness School is a three-year, co-ed program for youth who display high-risk indicators and have shown an interest in wilderness experiences. This program fills a vital gap for youth who are falling through the cracks for a variety of reasons including financial barriers, mental health challenges, family breakdown, identity issues, and social isolation. Wilderness School can be the turning point to supporting at-risk youth to become healthy, empowered, and confident human beings. Visit Website |
| Project Literacy Victoria | Literacy Victoria/READ – Better Together! An integration project | 2016 | Grantee | Learning | Children, Youth, Adults | Since the 1980s, Literacy Victoria and the READ Society have been serving children, youth and adults with various literacy needs in Greater Victoria. Requested funding will support a merger between these two organizations, who believe that merging will allow for more effective and efficient service provision. Integrated administration expenses will allow Literacy Victoria and the READ Society to apply more funds directly to literacy services. Acquiring help with literacy will become easier and more fluid for some of Victoria’s most disadvantaged citizens. Visit Website |
| Ptarmigan Music and Theatre Society | Strength Within: Arts for Healing and Engagement | 2016 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | Adults, Seniors, Disabled | Working with community partners, Ptarmigan Music and Theatre Society will coordinate interactive artistic workshops designed for individuals who are living with physical or mental health challenges and experiencing isolation, homelessness, and poverty. This project will bring inspirational and healing arts workshops to Victoria’s most vulnerable citizens, allowing them opportunities for learning, self-expression, enjoyment, community connection, and improved physical and mental health. It will increase the range of artistic and creative activities that exist for underserved populations in Victoria, and will allow vulnerable members of our community to live healthier, happier and more engaged lives. Visit Website |
| Saanich Neighbourhood Place | Child & Youth Health Network | 2016 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | Children, Youth | The Child & Youth Health Network (C&YHN) is a Collective Impact initiative aligning systems and resources to improve the mental health of children and youth in the Capital Region, as a way to promote and ensure community well-being in the long-term. The C&YHN is preparing to launch its first five-year campaign to increase connectedness for young people with an ‘Index of Connectedness’. This Index will be the foundation of a region-wide shared measurement system. Partnership development to support deep engagement across sectors and communities, including local First Nations, will continue to be a key strategy. Visit Website |
| Shelbourne Community Kitchen | Sustainability Project | 2016 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Health & Wellness | Adults, Seniors | This project will empower the Shelbourne Community Kitchen Society to develop a three-point sustainability plan to expand nutritious, affordable food access and food skills training to more clients, and enhance program awareness to clients who currently only utilize the pantry. This sustainability plan will include the development of a robust, client-centred evaluation framework and a needs assessment tool; enhancement and expansion of the current volunteer management system; and creation of a strategic action plan to ensure financial sustainability and growth of the Society in the medium-to-long-term. This project will enable the Society to meet the increased need for food-security programming. Visit Website |
| Sierra Club of BC Foundation | The Future is HERE: Climate and Place in CRD Schools | 2016 | Grantee | Learning | Children, Youth | Sierra Club BC will partner with up to ten schools to deliver place-based environmental education programs, adapted from its new climate solutions toolkit. The project will use a strengths-based approach to increase support for teachers to integrate localized, climate-oriented, outdoor activities into classrooms, and promote healthy childhood development for students. Up to 1000 regional Grade six to eight students and up to 100 teachers will participate in hands-on, nature-based workshops that integrate Indigenous pedagogy and inquiry-based learning, resulting in a deeper sense of belonging in their community, and a stronger commitment to post-carbon solutions in an age of reconciliation. Visit Website |
| Society for Kids at Tennis | Free Tennis Lessons For Disadvantaged Children and Youth in CRD | 2016 | Grantee | Sports & Recreation | Children, Youth | This program will provide free tennis lessons and equipment to disadvantaged children in Victoria. The Society for Kids at Tennis has expanded its focus from financially-disadvantaged children to include children and youth with special needs. Benefits include enhanced physical literacy, physical fitness, and emotional and social development. The Society for Kids at Tennis works in partnership with 35 social agencies operating in every municipality in the Capital Regional District. The Society will provide over 1800 hours of instruction to over 1000 children and youth during this funding cycle. Visit Website |
| Society of St. Vincent de Paul of Vancouver Island | Enabling Sustainable Independent Housing | 2016 | Grantee | Standard of Living | Children, Adults | This project will improve long-term housing outcomes for at-risk women and single mothers who are moving into transitional housing. The project will operate out of Rosalie’s Village, a new 42-unit transitional housing development owned and operated by St. Vincent de Paul. Funding is requested to support the design and implementation of a self-sustaining community development model that will help prepare residents for a successful transition to independent housing. Through this project, residents and stakeholders will co-create an environment that builds strong social connections, increases self-esteem, and supports movement toward sustainability. Visit Website |
| Society of St. Vincent de Paul of Vancouver Island | Food Share Network – Action Plan Implementation Phase 3 | 2016 | Grantee | Standard of Living | Adults | Formed in 2014, the Food Share Network (FSN) is a collaboration of over 40 organizations working together to improve food access and address food insecurity in the region. In this next phase, the FSN will develop its governance policies, establish a website, and create and implement an updated action plan. To support financial sustainability, the FSN will explore membership fees, grants and creating a social enterprise. The FSN Coordinator will continue to support the implementation of the Food Rescue project, promote the use of GiveFoodGetFood.ca, strengthen relationships, and coordinate efforts among members toward addressing food insecurity. Visit Website |
| Sooke Fine Arts Society | Legacy Project – Public Art | 2016 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Arts & Culture | First Nations | The Sooke Fine Arts Society Legacy Project will consist of a series of public art sculptures in the community of Sooke, inspired by Coast Salish place-based legends and realized by members of local First Nations communities. The sculptures will include audio-visual components to enhance visitor appreciation and understanding. This project is a tribute to the region’s dynamic arts and culture sector, promoting community beautification and pride. It is a celebration of the Indigenous heritage of the region, bringing Coast Salish culture to the fore and thereby creating bridges of understanding between cultures through stories of place that connect us all. Visit Website |
| Sooke Hospice Society | Comfort Mattress’s Paved area to Hospice house | 2016 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Adults, Seniors, Disabled | The Sooke Hospice Society will purchase mattresses to allow individuals in palliative care to complete their journey in the comfort of their own home. Air mattresses will keep bed-bound patients’ skin in good condition, and good quality mattresses will provide comfort for patients spending 50% of their time in bed. Additionally, the Society is looking to have its driveway paved, to help prevent falls. Its Hospice house is used for counselling, meetings, training, and other events. Currently, the driveway is very uneven, causing difficulties for people with limited mobility or who use mobility aids. Visit Website |
| South Galiano Volunteer Fire Department Society | Firefighter Personal Protective Equipment | 2016 | Grantee | Safety | Adults | By regulation, firefighter personal protective clothing must be replaced every ten years, a costly replacement for any volunteer fire department. The South Galiano Fire Department needs to replace two to four sets of protective clothing (coats, pants, boots and helmets). New training guidelines introduced by the province meant increased spending on training and other safety equipment over the last two years. While previous support from the Victoria Foundation has helped with these training requirements, protective gear replacement is in need of additional funding. This grant will meet this funding gap and keep our firefighters safe. Visit Website |
| St. Andrew’s Cathedral | St Andrew’s Roman Catholic Cathedral 125th Anniversary Celebrations 2017 | 2016 | Grantee | Arts & Culture | Children, Youth, Adults, Seniors | The Cultural Events committee for the 125th anniversary of St. Andrew’s Roman Catholic Cathedral, which is a National Historic Site, will use its resources and energy to promote the historical legacy and the contemporary and future relevance of St. Andrew’s Cathedral in the city of Victoria. It is planning to invite musical groups and individual musicians from the broader community to participate in special concerts during its 125th anniversary year, to highlight the unique acoustical, architectural beauty and spiritual legacy of the cathedral building. The Cathedral opens its doors to invite and embrace the community it seeks to serve. Visit Website |
| St. John’s Church | Purchase produce cooler for the Food Bank at St. John’s | 2016 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Children, Youth, Adults, Seniors | St. John’s Church is an active member of the Food Share Network, a collaboration of organizations working together to improve food access. The Food Bank at St. John’s will need a cooler to keep fresh produce and other perishable foods made available through the Food Rescue project as fresh as possible until the food can be distributed to clients. Client health will be greatly improved by increasing the amount of fresh fruits and vegetables as well as other perishable products such as cheese and yogurt in their diets. Visit Website |
| Story Studio Writing Society | Story Studio Writing Society – Spring 2017 Program | 2016 | Grantee | Learning | Children, Youth | Story Studio will engage 29 elementary and middle school classes in the Victoria region throughout the spring of 2017. At no cost to students or teachers, each class will participate in four, two-hour creative writing workshops, spread over several weeks. Workshops will be led by a facilitator and three assistants, and some by a professional artist and writer. Sessions will follow a methodology developed by Story Studio to unlock the narrative and artistic abilities of students, encouraging a life-long engagement in literacy. At the end of the program, each student participant will have a customized, bound book of their work. Visit Website |
| Story Theatre Productions Society | A Website for the 21st Century! | 2016 | Grantee | Arts & Culture | Children, Adults | Story Theatre requires a complete overhaul of its website to update the platform and design. The organization would like to provide a website that further enhances the audience experience through interactive engagement, including podcasts, videos and literacy activities. Further, the website will be accessible to students, parents and teachers, allowing all visitors to have a fulfilling experience and easily learn about and book Story Theatre’s services. Visit Website |
| SWOVA Community Development & Research Society | Peace Kids | 2016 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Children | Peace Kids is an evidence-based violence prevention program for students in Grades 4, 5 and 6 (aged 9 to 11 years) living in the Southern Gulf Islands. Students are engaged in skill-building workshops that promote social and emotional learning (SEL) and critical thinking about social responsibility. The program assists young people to address issues such as bullying, conflict, personal violence and teaches them how to have healthy and respectful relationships. Visit Website |
| The Other Guys Theatre Company Society | Rattenbury. A chamber opera by Tobin Stokes. | 2016 | Grantee | Arts & Culture | Adults, Seniors | In collaboration with Pacific Opera Victoria, the Other Guys Theatre Company will premiere Tobin Stokes’ “Rattenbury”, an opera based on the life and death of the infamous British Columbian architect Francis Rattenbury. Stokes uses a local legendary character to tell a story that speaks to the universal themes of lost youth and ambition. The title role will be sung by internationally-acclaimed tenor, Richard Margison, with Kathleen Brett as his mistress, Alma. Maestro Arthur Arnold, the Conductor of the Moscow Symphony, will conduct the premiere. |
| Threshold Housing Society | Breaking the Cycle of Homelessness by Housing At-Risk Youth | 2016 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Housing | Youth | Threshold Housing Society is committed to creating a safe and stable home environment for Victoria’s vulnerable youth. Threshold received 117 applications last year but only had the capacity to house 30 at-risk youth at any one time. Given the growing need and urgency to prevent at-risk youth from falling into adult homelessness, Threshold has leased an ideal property for youth housing, opening its doors in September 2016. This new building will house up to eight more youth in a transitional setting. It will also be the central location for Threshold’s life-skills and transitional planning programs. Visit Website |
| Together Against Poverty Society | Tenant Legal Advocacy and Empowerment Project (TLAP) | 2016 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Housing | Adults | Together Against Poverty Society’s (TAPS) Tenant Legal Advocacy and Empowerment Project will provide legal advocacy services to vulnerable, low-income tenants in the Capital Regional District, including information, referrals, summary advice and full representation at Dispute Resolution Hearings through the Residential Tenancy Branch. These services will help improve the lives of these tenants by ensuring their housing is reflective of standards prescribed under the Residential Tenancy Act and by protecting them from wrongful evictions. The project will also create a Tenant Rights Group that will seek to raise awareness of the common issues faced by marginalized, low-income tenants. Visit Website |
| University of Victoria | University 101 Volunteer Leadership Program | 2016 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | Adults, Seniors | University 101 provides free non-credit courses in the Humanities and Social Sciences for people who have experienced significant barriers to education, such as poverty, mental health diagnoses, single-parenting, and unstable housing. Outcomes include increased confidence, greater social connection and civic engagement. The Uni 101 Leadership Program is a year-long program for graduates of the core Uni 101 courses. Leadership Program participants volunteer as student leaders in the core Uni 101 courses and undertake a concurrent leadership course focusing on inner strength, communication and critical thinking. Graduates of the Leadership Program facilitate future leadership courses, creating sustainability in the program. Visit Website |
| Vancouver Island AIDS Society | Women’s Space: a capacity building project for structurally vulnerable women | 2016 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Health & Wellness | Adults, Disabled | The Women’s Space project expands access to culturally-appropriate, supportive health services for women experiencing homelessness, illicit substance use, and violence. By expanding on the Society’s successful weekly Women’s Space drop-in, women in the downtown community will have greater access to HIV testing, supportive counselling services, group education, meals, and peer mentorship. The Women’s Space coordinator will work closely with community-based service providers such as emergency shelters, drop-in programs, and health centres to ensure that staff in these organizations have the skills and knowledge needed to meet the unique needs of structurally-vulnerable women. Visit Website |
| Vancouver Island Persons Living with HIV/AIDS Society | Complementary Health Services for People Living with HIV/HCV | 2016 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Adults, Seniors | The Vancouver Island Persons Living with HIV/AIDS Society (VPWAS) wishes to expand its services to encompass complementary holistic health care to improve the quality of life and well-being of those living with the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) or hepatitis C virus (HCV) in Victoria. Where possible, services will be provided by students from local educational institutions to create community partnerships and improve awareness of HIV/HCV. The program will include on-site services, partnerships with businesses and off-site service providers, as well as an emergency fund for unexpected medical costs not otherwise covered. Visit Website |
| Vancouver Island Providence Community Association | Restoring nature and people through a living labyrinth | 2016 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Belonging & Engagement | Adults, Disabled | At Providence Farm, the nursery program is an essential experience for individuals with mental health issues, brain injuries, developmental and learning disabilities and physical challenges. Expanding the foundation for healthy and supportive relationships towards oneself, others and the environment, this program now looks to extend into the larger landscape of the farm, through the addition of a therapeutic, contemplative, and environmentally sensitive labyrinth garden. This project will enhance the existing horticultural program, and draw on other program areas, while integrating a sense of belonging and connection of program participants, volunteers, staff, and farm visitors. Visit Website |
| Victoria Brain Injury Society | Support Survivors | 2016 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Health & Wellness | Adults, Seniors, Disabled | Supporting Survivors will expand the support that Victoria Brain Injury Society (VBIS) provides to brain injury survivors, helping them transition from hospital to home and supporting them to take part in their community. It will provide intake services at VBIS and Victoria General Hospital to ensure that survivors understand supports available to them in the community, thus reducing anxiety about leaving the hospital. The project will also support recruitment and training of volunteers and provide 12 workshops, where various cross-sectoral partners will provide information about additional services available in the community. Visit Website |
| Victoria Choral Society | Handel’s “Joshua” Concert | 2016 | Grantee | Arts & Culture | Youth, Adults, Seniors | The Victoria Choral Society (VCS) will self-produce a concert on May 9, 2017 featuring Handel’s oratorio “Joshua.” This concert will provide a rare opportunity for Victoria audiences to hear this masterwork, with its beautiful arias and stirring choruses, including the well-known “See the Conquering Hero Comes.” The project will also benefit the local music community, as VCS will hire 33 instrumentalists and four soloists. In addition, VCS will reach out to youth, disadvantaged people, and community groups to provide complimentary or reduced-cost tickets. Visit Website |
| Victoria Community Food Hub Society | The Good Food Strategy- Large Scale CI Collaborative Initiative | 2016 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Children, Youth, Adults, Seniors | The Good Food Network has come together so that all people in our region can have access to healthy, local food and so that our local food system will provide Good Food for generations to come. Good Food is food that is good for the planet, good for the producer, and good for the health and well-being of all. Funding will support this large-scale regional collaboration over the next year to align resources and actions in the areas of food literacy, food access and food economy, to achieve shared outcomes by 2025. Visit Website |
| Victoria Cool Aid Society | Cool Aid Client Engagement Program | 2016 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Belonging & Engagement | Adults, Seniors | Cool Aid’s Client Engagement Program will develop and deliver expanded strategies, processes and initiatives for residents, clients, patients and program participants to contribute to decisions affecting their living environments, healthcare and other supports and services received through Cool Aid. Funding is requested to enhance and expand Cool Aid’s existing client engagement initiatives and facilitate ongoing opportunities for client involvement and participation across the organization. The program will contribute to a stronger sense of belonging and engagement among individuals with multiple issues and barriers (homelessness, poverty, mental health and addictions) in Greater Victoria, thereby enhancing clients’ health and well-being. Visit Website |
| Victoria Disability Resource Centre | Enhanced Employability Program for Persons with Disabilities | 2016 | Grantee | Economy | Adults, Disabled | In partnership with the Neil Squire Society, the Victoria Disability Resource Centre will work with 45 people with disabilities, 15 of whom are under 30 years of age, to enhance their employment prospects. The program will include one-to-one coaching in career planning, preparation of resumes and cover letters, interview skills, use of personal success stories in an interview, and creative job searches. Based on previous program results, it is expected that 40% of participants will obtain employment, 20% will return to school and 40% will benefit from improved employment skills, which can be used for future work and volunteer opportunities. Visit Website |
| Victoria Gilbert & Sullivan Society | Victoria G&S Society Production Spring 2017: Princess Ida | 2016 | Grantee | Arts & Culture | Youth, Adults, Seniors | “Princess Ida” is one of the lesser-known works of the 19th-century musical theatre geniuses W.S. Gilbert & Arthur Sullivan, and has not been performed in Victoria in the past two decades. As such, it is “fresh material” for audiences and performers alike. The production will provide an opportunity for young performers to engage with challenging, beautiful music, while learning from other performers with decades of experience. For audiences, it will combine the familiar feel and recognizable style of better-known Gilbert and Sullivan works, while offering novelty and discovery, and will likely prompt reflection on the past century’s advances in feminism. Visit Website |
| Victoria Independent Film & Video Festival | Victoria Film Festival Indigenous Program with Guest Curator | 2016 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Arts & Culture | First Nations, Youth, Adults, Seniors | The Indigenous Program will present a series of feature films and shorts carefully selected by an Indigenous Canadian Guest Curator. Each film chosen for the Program will be directed by an Indigenous filmmaker and speak to themes and issues pertinent to Indigenous identity and experiences. This project will invite youth and community groups to engage with the films, facilitate discussion between the curator and the audiences, and inspire the next generation of Indigenous Canadians to communicate their stories creatively. The Program benefits the community through strengthening the arts and cultural landscape, while fostering a sense of belonging to Indigenous Canadians. Visit Website |
| Victoria Integration Society (Recreation Integration Victoria) | Disability and Diversity: Education to Promote Active Living | 2016 | Grantee | Sports & Recreation | Children, Youth, Adults, Seniors, Disabled | Recreation Integration Victoria will develop and deliver educational and promotional materials aimed at reducing existing attitudinal barriers towards persons with disabilities. Behaviours and perception can make it difficult for a person with a disability to engage in programs and activities in their community, often discouraging participation in sport and recreation before the person even gets started. Offered in collaboration with 20 community organizations through training sessions and outreach fairs, this program will target recreation centre staff, sport coaches, education professionals and members of the community-at-large. Visit Website |
| Victoria Native Friendship Centre | Community Food Educator to support the Food Rescue Project | 2016 | Grantee | Standard of Living | First Nations, Seniors, Disabled | Funding will support a Community Food Educator to work with First Nations, people with disabilities and low-income seniors to prepare and distribute perishable food donated through the Food Rescue project. The Food Rescue project provides fresh, nutritious food recovered from grocery stores to participants of the Food Share Network, a collaboration of over 40 non-profit agencies working to improve food access in the region. The Community Food Educator will be on-site at six of the participating agencies when food is delivered. The project will support 500 food-insecure people to create meals, develop recipes and receive mentoring about healthy eating. Visit Website |
| Victoria Philharmonic Choir Society | Monteverdi Choral Concert | 2016 | Grantee | Arts & Culture | Youth, Adults, Seniors | The Victoria Philharmonic Choir (VPC) is an auditioned and multi-generational organization that has become a vital part of the region’s musical culture. Support is needed for two choral concerts featuring the work of Monteverdi’s 1610 Vespers. In June 2017, the VPC will treat Greater Victoria audiences, with special outreach to youth, to high-quality performances featuring 80 voices, orchestra with period instrumentation, and internationally-notable soloists. The performance will contribute to the health and well-being of choristers, musicians and audiences. Moreover, audiences exceeding 700 will thrill to accessible, high-quality cultural events, while volunteers will experience belonging and community contribution. Visit Website |
| Victoria Rainbow Kitchen Society | Rainbow Kitchen | 2016 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Belonging & Engagement | Children, Youth, Adults, Seniors | Funding will support the Rainbow Kitchen, which provides a hot nutritious lunch to 125-140 people per day, five days per week. An estimated 1,100 individuals are served over 36,000 meals per year in a safe, non-judgmental, and welcoming place, free of charge. Rainbow Kitchen guests include low-income and often isolated seniors, working poor families, people temporarily unemployed or unemployable, and those dealing with mental health or addiction issues. Many guests have described this noontime meal as their “food security”. The Rainbow Kitchen relies on over 200 volunteers and one staff member to coordinate and deliver this program. Visit Website |
| Victoria Society for Children with Autism | Respite and Recreation Funding for autistic children and their families | 2016 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Children, Youth, Adults | The Victoria Society for Children with Autism (VSCA) provides support to parents whose children are on the autism spectrum. Many of these parents have had to leave full-time employment to take care of their child, which can be exhausting and lonely. The organization runs a respite program for parents as well as support programs for children, allowing them to attend recreational and community events. This support is vital to community inclusion for the autistic child as well as the caregiver, to reduce stress, strengthen families, and improve community bonds in the Capital Regional District. Visit Website |
| Victoria Therapeutic Riding Association | Victoria Therapeutic Riding Association Programming 2016/2017 | 2016 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Health & Wellness | Children, Youth, Adults | The Victoria Therapeutic Riding Association provides three unique therapeutic horseback riding programs for individuals with physical, cognitive and social challenges. The Adaptive Riding Program helps meet physical and occupational therapy goals, provides safe and effective recreation and increases students’ overall well-being. The Life Skills program builds on the Adaptive Riding Program, incorporating stable management practices to develop personal responsibility, behavioral regulation, and time management skills.The Early Intervention Program aids in the physical and cognitive development of at-risk children between the ages of three and five years old. Funding will support over 94 students to participate in these programs. Visit Website |
| Victoria Women’s Transition House Society | VWTH Women’s Drop-In Support Group | 2016 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Health & Wellness | Adults | The Victoria Women’s Transition House Drop-In Support Group is a psycho-educational counselling program for women affected by domestic abuse. Facilitated by two specialized counsellors, each two-hour group session will explore topics such as abuse, healthy relationships, stress management, and communication. This program will be delivered in partnership with YMCA-YWCA Vancouver Island and, starting in January 2017, will be held weekly for 48 weeks at YMCA-YWCA’s downtown location. Child-minding will be provided. Delivery of this program will help alleviate domestic abuse counselling waitlists and reach out to more women in the community. The Victoria Women’s Transition House Society (VWTH) has been serving the Greater Victoria community for 43 years by providing emergency shelter, support, counselling and education to women, with or without children, leaving abusive relationships so that they can live free from the effects of domestic violence and abuse and rebuild their lives. We offer counselling support for children who witness abuse; support services for women proceeding through the justice system; third stage transitional housing and counselling for older women; community education and prevention; and a robust volunteer program that provides support to our 24-hour Crisis & Information Line as well as other agency needs. We operate from six sites, including the Emergency Shelter, our Community Office, a Third Stage Housing location, and police and courthouse locations. All our services are offered free of charge, and each year we serve over 2,000 women and 150 children & youth. Visit Website |
| Victoria’s Quilts Canada | Quilts for People with Cancer | 2016 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Children, Youth, Adults, Seniors | Victoria’s Quilts Canada, Victoria Branch, makes quilts for British Columbians living with cancer. Volunteers come together once per month at a free venue to pick up fabrics, batting and backing to make quilts. A request for a quilt is taken at the National Office and local requests are forwarded to the Victoria Branch, which fills the request and delivers the quilt. By providing these quilts, the organization hopes to bring physical and spiritual comfort to those dealing with cancer, letting quilt recipients know that they are not alone in their struggle. Requested funding will purchase fabrics for 20 quilts. Visit Website |
| Volunteer and Community Resources Salt Spring Society | Needs Assessment for Administrative Services Hub for Not for Profits | 2016 | Grantee | Economy | Adults, Seniors | Salt Spring Island is an unincorporated community relying on services provided by not-for-profit organizations and volunteers. For these groups with limited resources, necessary tasks such as accounting, fiscal management, information technology and back-office skills can be overwhelming and debilitating to the services that they provide to the community. This project will explore a centralized “hub” model to help manage these tasks. This “hub” can address the common challenges that all not-for-profits have in terms of business efficiency. The organization would explore this as a social enterprise, a model that maximizes the use of community resources/expertise and promotes sustainability. Visit Website |
| Watershed Watch Salmon Society | Building the constituency for salmon and watershed conservation in Victoria | 2016 | Grantee | Environment | Youth, Adults, Seniors | Watershed Watch Salmon Society’s work has benefited wild salmon runs and watersheds across BC for 17 years. This project expands the capacity of Watershed Watch in Greater Victoria. While opinion polling shows broad public support for salmon and water conservation across the political spectrum, we see room for better public engagement around these powerful icons. With increased public outreach, Watershed Watch will engage new audiences within the community, increase knowledge of these campaigns, and develop a more engaged public base. Together, this strengthens the ability of Watershed Watch to further influence policies essential to watersheds, wild salmon, and our ecosystems. Visit Website |
| West Coast Children’s Choral Society | Prelude Choir Launch | 2016 | Grantee | Arts & Culture | Children | Under the artistic leadership of Madeleine Humer for the past 15 years, the Victoria Children’s Choir (VCC) has produced stunning and diverse choral music. Their success is recognized at home and abroad, a result of high-quality training and performance to international standards. The VCC is the sole provider of this level of choral training in Greater Victoria and demand has exceeded its current programming. The VCC will expand to include the Prelude Choir, a non-auditioned ensemble for younger children, aged seven to nine, introducing them to voice, sound, and music through fun and interactive group exercises and empowering their future musical pursuits. Visit Website |
| Young Parents Support Network | Building Connections with Young Parent Families | 2016 | Grantee | Getting Started | Children, Youth, Adults | The Building Connections program will build on current programs to meet the needs of marginalized young parent families who do not attend regular parenting programs offered in the community. In 2015, 85 young parents and 137 children participated in this program, which provides a healthy meal, childcare, and group and one-to-one parenting interventions. Funding is requested to build on the program’s success by responding to requests to offer it in other young parent serving organizations. The program will reduce duplication of services while providing parenting education that meets the specific needs of this vulnerable population. Visit Website |
| Adventist Health Care Home Society – Rest Haven Lodge | Evening Music Therapy Project | 2015 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Seniors, Disabled | Rest Haven Lodge wishes to provide a music therapy program in the evenings. Research has proven that residents who participate in regular music therapy sessions experience reduced behavioural disruptions, agitation, anxiety, confusion, boredom, loneliness, depression and other symptoms experienced in the evenings in long-term care. The Evening Music Therapy Program would enrich the lives of the lodge’s entire community, benefitting not only the residents but also providing additional support for families and staff members. Visit Website |
| Anawim Companions Society | Community Engagement Pilot Project | 2015 | Grantee | Housing | Adults | Funds will support community engagement and communications activities, including compensation for a community outreach liaison position and equipment costs. Through this project, the community outreach liaison will identify and connect with new funders, communicate with existing donors, build partnerships with related organizations to reduce duplication, and expand awareness of Anawim’s day services in the community. If the year-long project is funded and meets its goals, it will make Anawim’s services more sustainable and build the organization’s capacity to fund this position from its own revenues. Visit Website |
| Bateman Foundation | Outdoor Educational Program at the Robert Bateman Centre | 2015 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Health & Wellness | Children, Youth | The Centre plans to extend its current in-gallery educational program to include an additional outdoor component in a park environment. Offered in partnership with the CRD, this program will offer children the opportunity to learn about and gain a respect for nature through art and direct exposure. The participating students will have a unique experience that combines both culture and environmentalism, which the Centre hopes will create a foundation for an ongoing relationship with nature. Through this direct exposure, participants can expect to experience proven health benefits so important to learning. The grant will be used for the development and evaluation of this program. Visit Website |
| Beckley Farm Lodge Foundation | Let’s Put a Bow on the Bus for Beckley | 2015 | Grantee | Transportation | Seniors, Disabled | As the current bus is nearing the end of its life and Beckley Farm Lodge is restricting outings to fairly short distances for fear of break-down, the Lodge is seeking to replace the bus. The new bus will continue to serve the Adult Day Program and the outings provided to community seniors and to residents of the Lodge. Being able to maximize the use of a reliable, new bus will give the Lodge the opportunity to further expand services to more at-risk seniors in our community. Visit Website |
| Bipolar Disorder Society of British Columbia | Stigma Stomp Classroom Presentations Program 2016 | 2015 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Youth | The Stigma Stomp Program promotes awareness and education of mental health wellbeing in schools and the community and addresses the concerns of youth at risk, encouraging them to seek professional help for early diagnosis and treatment. In 2016, the program will reach (a) over 1,500 youth ages 12-19 in Greater Victoria classrooms to eradicate stigma and unwarranted fears and bullying; (b) 400 people in community-based mental health awareness presentations and events to share knowledge about mental illness and mental wellness; and (c) 1,400 unique visitors per month through the Bipolar Disorder Society’s website and social media. Visit Website |
| Board of Education of School District No. 63 – Saanich | Youth Media Project | 2015 | Grantee | Arts & Culture | Youth, First Nations | This project engages Indigenous youth in a film project that explores language revitalization and stories from community elders. The project is based in the traditional territory of the Peoples, in the four communities of BO?E?EN (Pauquachin), W?SÁNE? (Tsartlip), W?S??EM (Tseycum). A local artist, hosted at a district secondary school, works directly with students who are studying the language to create a film as an extracurricular activity. This comprehensive project involves a variety of skills for the students: film production, photography, videography, computer work, public speaking, and practicing skills with local elders. Visit Website |
| Board of Education of School District No. 64 – Gulf Islands | Pender School Solar Roof Project | 2015 | Grantee | Environment | Children, Youth, Adults | This project will involve the installation of approximately 120 solar photovoltaic panels on the school roof, generating clean electricity. It will demonstrate that renewable energy has entered the mainstream, act as a teaching tool, and provide an exciting opportunity for students, teachers, families and the Pender Island community to work together on a vital solution to the challenge of climate change. As well as the environmental and educational benefits, the project will generate revenue that will be use for student bursaries and energy-related science equipment for the school. Visit Website |
| Boy Scouts of Canada – Cascadia Council (Camp Barnard) | Keego Kitchen/Dining Hall Renovation | 2015 | Grantee | Environment | Children, Youth | Scouts Canada’s Camp Barnard provides facilities for Scouts and other youth groups to participate together in physical activities and adventures in an outdoor environment. The Camp’s kitchen, Keego Kitchen, is heavily used by many groups from May to September, but sits empty much of the rest of the year due to the lack of insulation. Funds will be used to winterize the building with a new roof, insulation, a vapour barrier, drywall, and a heat pump. Having a winterized building will encourage use by school and non-profit groups throughout the year, supporting the Camp to operate as a financially sustainable facility. Visit Website |
| British Columbia Childhood Cancer Parents’ Association | Finding the New Normal: Helping Children and Youth with Cancer | 2015 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Children, Youth, Adults | BCCCPA aims to provide Vancouver Island children with cancer with a path to finding their “new normal” after diagnosis. Medical care is only one aspect of dealing with childhood cancer. When ball games are replaced by transfusions and when the hospital replaces summer camp, children and their families need positive ways to cope and find meaning in a journey that can often leave them isolated and traumatized. Peer support; specialized recreation; practical assistance for extraordinary expenses and individual help for families are proven practices that improve children’s well being and contribute to positive health outcomes. Visit Website |
| British Columbia Lions Society for Children with Disabilities | Easter Seals Camp Shawnigan 2016 | 2015 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Children, Youth | Easter Seals Camp Shawnigan provides week-long, sleep-over summer camp sessions on Vancouver Island for over 300 youth with cognitive and/or physical disabilities, ages six to 18. All activities are designed to build confidence, independence and peer-to-peer interaction in a recreational environment. Campers are encouraged to participate in activities such as climbing walls, water sports, canoeing, wheelchair sports and leadership training. Easter Seals Camp Shawnigan provides a unique opportunity for individuals with disabilities to share ideas, learn team-building skills and become strong community leaders. Visit Website |
| Canadian Diabetes Association | Walk and Talk An Activity Based Program for Diabetes Self-Management and Prevention | 2015 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Adults, Seniors | Walk and Talk is a free eight-week Canadian Diabetes Association program that teaches the principles of diabetes self-management for those living with or at risk of diabetes, and their caregivers. Participants meet weekly to learn and gain new skills from professionals such as dietitians, podiatrists, diabetes educators and fitness instructors. The 1.5 hour sessions include a group walk where they can further engage with each other and the guest speaker. Participants receive weekly wellness tools and resources to add to their self-management toolkit. Walk and Talk empowers people to self-manage their diabetes in a supportive, peer oriented environment. Visit Website |
| Capital Regional District | Active Transportation & Healthy Communities Program | 2015 | Grantee | Transportation | Children, Youth, Adults, Seniors | The Active Transportation & Healthy Communities Program is designed to encourage and support the increased use of cycling, walking and rolling among residents in the Capital Region. The program involves collaboration between the public sector and non-profit organizations to tackle the complex health, social and environmental challenges associated with increased automobile use. Through the implementation of ten diverse projects over two years intended to reach children, youth, seniors, First Nations, newcomers and others, the program will engage 28,000 residents in achieving the vision of a healthy, connected population who safely use active transportation for both recreation and commuting purposes. Visit Website |
| Centennial United Church | Centennial United 130th Anniversary Stained Glass Window Repair | 2015 | Grantee | Arts & Culture | In honour of Centennial United’s 130th anniversary, the Church Council proposes to repair two of the stained-glass windows facing the Gorge Road entrance. A comprehensive window survey by Mercer Schaeffer Glassworks indicated that the windows above the main door in the narthex are in extreme need of repair. These windows are the first impression people have when approaching the church, so they are important to maintain. Furthermore, the repair restores the building’s historic significance in the community. Visit Website |
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| CFAX Santas Anonymous Society | CFAX Santas Anonymous Society and the Christmas Giving Network | 2015 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Standard of Living | Children, Youth, Adults | The Christmas Giving Network, established in 2012 and spearheaded by CFAX Santas Anonymous, works collectively to ensure that Christmas support programs are delivered effectively by each of its ten member charities throughout the Capital Regional District. The Network understands that families and individuals seeking help at Christmastime worry that demand will outweigh resources and therefore some apply to multiple agencies for support. Duplicate applications reduce the ability of charities to help the ever-growing need in our community of those struggling to provide for their families during the holidays. Funds will assist the Network to purchase the established database used to identify duplication and other important data about our community’s needs. Visit Website |
| Child Abuse Prevention and Counselling Centre of Greater Victoria(Mary Manning Centre) | Raising Happy Kids | 2015 | Grantee | Safety | Children, Youth, Adults | Raising Happy Kids provides practical parent education and support for two groups of ten parents/caregivers with children and youth affected by trauma. The groups focus on parenting skills, safety plans and communication, utilizing art therapy, discussion, role plays, and relaxation techniques. Topics covered include loss, trauma, child development, and emotional regulation. Benefits include providing timely access to trauma informed mental health services and increasing safety and resiliency within families. The program aims to provide practical parenting tools, connect families to support networks, and increase protective factors for children and youth while increasing the safety of their home environment. Visit Website |
| Civic Orchestra Society of Victoria | 2015/16 Season of Music | 2015 | Grantee | Arts & Culture | Adults, Seniors | Inaugurated in 1983, the Civic Orchestra of Victoria is a volunteer organization dedicated to providing an opportunity for musicians of varying ages and abilities to perform a wide repertoire of orchestral music for supportive audiences in the Victoria region. Funds are requested for the spring 2016 performances of Moshe Hammer Performs Tchaikovsky and Animals Through the Ages. The orchestra serves as a platform for aspiring soloists and for choral groups, both as a learning experience and for the enjoyment of its members. Visit Website |
| Communica Dialogue and Resolution Services Society | Re-Entry Mediation Program Development | 2015 | Grantee | Safety | Adults | Communica’s Re-Entry Mediation Program will provide mediation between prisoners exiting prison and individuals with whom they would like to build positive relationships. The program is being modelled on a successful program operating in Baltimore, Maryland, which has had very good success reducing re-offending rates for participants. The funds will be used to support the initial steps needed to jump-start the program, including conducting research, consultations with community partners, and developing the training and tools needed to launch the Re-Entry Mediation Program. Visit Website |
| Community Social Planning Council of Greater Victoria | Youth Program Quality Initiative: Building Long-Term Program Sustainability | 2015 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | Youth | The Youth Program Quality Initiative (YPQI) provides ongoing support to youth workers and organizations serving youth with a quality improvement process that involves training, coaching and peer-to-peer learning and networking. It works with over 20 organizations and more than 100 youth workers. By supporting youth programming that emphasizes meaningful youth engagement, the YPQI increases the resiliency of our community’s youth and improves protective factors for youth mental health. This project aims to develop and implement steps identified in the initiative’s long-term development plan to make the YPQI sustainable by September 2016; these will be developed and applied in parallel to the regular YPQI program. Visit Website |
| Cridge Centre for the Family | The Cridge Brain Injury Employment Program | 2015 | Grantee | Standard of Living | Adults, Disabled | The Cridge Centre for the Family’s Brain Injury Services have provided support to survivors of brain injury for over 20 years. Without support, survivors are at risk of homelessness, as they often have to relearn basic living and work skills. Job skills training is provided for up to 36 survivors each year, which enables them to be self-sufficient members of the community. Funds will support a pilot offering survivors who have been trained in kitchen and food skills an opportunity to work as cooks at a local school’s hot breakfast program, both increasing food security for the students and employing survivors in a supportive environment. Visit Website |
| Crisis Intervention and Public Information Society of Greater Victoria (NEED2) | NEED2 2016 | 2015 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Youth | The online emotional and crisis support provided through the chat and text service at youthspace.ca reaches youth under 30 years of age when other services are unavailable. Research shows the online medium allows increased accessibility and disclosure around issues involving shame and blame, specifically suicide, self-injury, anxiety, depression and sexuality, compared to face-to-face and phone support. This project will ensure youth across Vancouver Island continue to have access to this invaluable service. Leveraging the skill of well-trained youth volunteers, this project provides support that decreases risk, increases positive coping skills, and serves as a portal to life-saving intervention. Visit Website |
| Dance Victoria Society | (Dance Victoria) South Vancouver Island Dance Archives Assistant | 2015 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Learning | Adults, Seniors | Dance Victoria will contract an Archives Assistant to work with the South Vancouver Island Dance Archives. Established in 2011, the Dance Archives has an active volunteer committee that meets weekly to receive, catalogue and properly house photographs, news clippings, house programs and other materials donated from the community. Working with the volunteer committee, the Archives Assistant’s main duties will include cataloguing materials, developing summaries for each collection, and assisting with the development of displays and exhibits for installations. Exhibits will be showcased at the Royal Theatre and at Dance Victoria’s studios. Visit Website |
| Family Services of Greater Victoria BC | Men on Their Own | 2015 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Adults | Family Services of Greater Victoria will research, design and deliver a new group program for men experiencing relationship breakdown. Multiple studies have demonstrated that men’s experience of divorce is more damaging than it is for women, yet programs to address this problem are rare. Men have more serious outcomes in physical and mental health, social integration, and post divorce/separation relationships with their children. To design an effective program, Family Services of Greater Victoria will use its client database to interview men about what they perceive to be the needs of men; develop a program based on these interviews and on recent academic research; and begin delivery of a pilot program. Visit Website |
| Fernwood Neighbourhood Resource Group Society | Neighbourhood Family Food Security | 2015 | Grantee | Standard of Living | Children, Youth, Adults, Seniors | The Neighbourhood Family Food Security project aims to expand and ensure the sustainability of the family, child and youth-focused food programs offered through eight community centre partners. These family meals, community kitchens and other food skill programs facilitate access to healthy food for vulnerable and low-income people. Community centres involved in this project are hubs of integrated resources that build family capacity to meet food needs by providing opportunities to build relationships and learn essential life skills. These centres also connect families with other resources and services to support them in coping with food insecurity and managing their own wellbeing. Visit Website |
| Friends of Living & Learning Through Loss | Supporting Youth – Community Education | 2015 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Youth | Learning Through Loss is committed to the health and well-being of youth in our community by providing grief education and loss support groups to youth ages 10 to 18. To ensure youth have access to resources and support, the Supporting Youth – Community Education project was created to provide training and education to those who support youth: youth peers parents, youth workers, and professionals. These educational workshops are led by a highly qualified team and enhance our community’s capacity to understand youth grief and loss issues. The project also aims to provide practical tools and strategies for supporting youth to make healthy choices and heal through their loss experiences. Visit Website |
| Garth Homer Society | Supported Self-Employment (SSE) | 2015 | Grantee | Standard of Living | Youth, Adults, Disabled | Through the development of micro-enterprises based on individual interests, the Supported Self- Employment Program (SSE) provides young adults with developmental disabilities and autism with a new path to inclusion, belonging, and work. It is addressed to individuals with moderate support needs who have the cognitive capacity for employment but lack the social and emotional skills. This is a group that is currently largely unsupported through normal funding channels. SSE will help them build skills and gain the confidence that comes through ongoing community engagement and, ultimately, be successful in a regular employment position. Visit Website |
| Georgia Strait Alliance | Protected Bluespace – a National Marine Conservation Area for Southern Georgia Strait | 2015 | Grantee | Environment | Adults, Children, Youth, Seniors | Through the Protected Bluespace project, Georgia Strait Alliance and the Saanich Inlet Protection Society will partner in collaboration with other local non-profits to achieve the long-standing goal of establishing a National Marine Conservation Area (NMCA) in the Southern Georgia Strait. Through information gathering, education, outreach and garnering support from influencers and opinion leaders, project leaders will urge federal and provincial decision-makers to move forward on declaring the NMCA. Once established, the NMCA will provide a management plan to ensure conservation of marine habitats, species and water quality in balance with ecologically sustainable use of marine resources. Visit Website |
| Greater Victoria Coalition to End Homelessness Society | Aboriginal Coalition to End Homelessness | 2015 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | First Nations, Children, Youth, Adults, Seniors, Disabled | The Coalition needs to bring a First Nations voice to address Aboriginal housing and homelessness. This is important because more than 30% of those experiencing homelessness in the region come from an indigenous background. Unfortunately, the Coalition has lacked both the expertise and knowledge to develop culturally appropriate solutions. The Aboriginal Coalition to End Homelessness will have that expertise along with an Island-wide mandate. This is important because a substantive proportion of the aboriginal population experiencing homelessness in Victoria represent are from the three Vancouver Island tribal groups. Visit Website |
| Greater Victoria Volunteer Society (Volunteer Victoria) | All On Board: Building Capacity, Strengthening Knowledge | 2015 | Grantee | Learning | Adults, Seniors | All on Board is a new training initiative to help more than 500 volunteers from small- and mediumsized nonprofit organizations across Greater Victoria engage more effectively in board work. The program aims to increase volunteers’ knowledge of emerging requirements and best practices in board governance and help them build capacity and reduce risk as board members and as leaders of community-based organizations. Many of the new accountability requirements in the 2015 BC Society Act will take effect in the Fall of 2016. This program helps volunteers better understand their roles and responsibilities and plan their actions to remain compliant with the legislation. Visit Website |
| Gulf Islands Centre for Ecological Learning | Southern Gulf Islands Conservation Conference | 2015 | Grantee | Environment | Adults | The Gulf Islands Centre for Ecological Learning, along with the Mayne Island Conservancy Society, will host a conference for Southern Gulf Island conservancies and nature education organizations in March 2016 on Mayne Island. With more than 20 different groups working actively to promote nature literacy and conservation in the Southern Gulf Islands, there is great potential for cooperation and collaboration. This conference will give attendees an opportunity to share resources and discuss common challenges and solutions. Visit Website |
| Haliburton Community Organic Farm Society | Farmer Internship Program – Haliburton Community Organic Farm Society | 2015 | Grantee | Learning | Adults | Along with its other goals of supporting farmers, stewardship, growing pure food and community, Haliburton Farm has steadily been realizing its educational vision in a Farm School. One challenge is funding a paid Internship Project, in compliance with the Employment Standards Act. The project will support the development of four new certified organic food producers, critically needed to increase local sustainable food production. Interns will work with eight on-site farm businesses, learning effective certified organic production techniques, holistic nutrition and habitat stewardship. Interacting with many community members, the project will have benefits far beyond its completion. Visit Website |
| HeroWork Program Society | Program Development | 2015 | Grantee | Economy | Adults | HeroWork helps other charities thrive by renewing and refreshing their physical infrastructure through exciting special events called Radical Renovations. Imagine a modern day barn-raising, where community come together with massive cooperation and common vision. This project will support the creation of a standardized leadership and event training program to empower Local Organizing Committees (LOCs) to organize Radical Renovations for worthy charities. This program will include standardized business processes, program manuals, LOC skills matrices and structure, leadership training and mentoring, project and team evaluation protocols, monitoring systems, branding, marketing, supply chain development–in short, every component necessary for community teams to put on successful Radical Renovations. Visit Website |
| Home is Where We Live – LifeCycles Project Society | Food Skills Empowerment Project | 2015 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Youth, Adults | The Food Skills Empowerment Project will enable the research for and coordination of a service referral and delivery system to fill the gap in food literacy education within LifeCycles’ networks, reaching 5000 people. Building on 21 years of organizational experience, this system matches experienced food literacy educators with community need. LifeCycles will pilot three new food literacy workshop series aimed at local food businesses, emergency food providers, and schools. The project will increase regional impact, support neighbourhood food hub development, and increase involvement of schools, businesses, and individuals, while building food security, local economy, selfreliance, creativity, teamwork, and greater wellbeing. Visit Website |
| Jewish Community Centre of Victoria | The Victoria International Jewish Film Festival | 2015 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | Youth, Adults, Seniors | The Victoria International Jewish Film Festival will present independent films that are not readily available at local cinemas. The Festival seeks to bring disparate groups together to learn about and reflect on fundamental and universal themes as expressed in Jewish-themed films. The films will not be religious in nature, but will offer secular, cultural experiences to the Jewish and wider communities of the region. The films will broaden awareness and provide an opportunity for community engagement. Volunteers will carry out all the festival planning, organization and delivery. Visit Website |
| John Howard Society of Victoria | Feeding Ourselves and Others Community Garden Project | 2015 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | Adults, Disabled | Feeding Ourselves and Others is a therapeutic organic garden project supporting individuals facing mental health, addictions, poverty, housing instability and related issues. Some individuals are completing community work service through Victoria Integrated Court, and all participants earn a stipend for their hours worked in the garden. This project successfully integrates therapeutic gardening with income generation through market sales, which improves lives and contributes to local food security. Participants report benefits such as learning new gardening skills, feeling more stabilized, improving their mental and physical health, enjoying an increased sense of community, making new friends, and experiencing economic improvement and increased employability. Visit Website |
| Junior Achievement of British Columbia | Economics for Success | 2015 | Grantee | Learning | Youth | The cost to society when a young person drops out of school includes impacts on social services, health, criminality, employment, and lower economic productivity. The Economics For Success Program encourages students to remain in school by helping them to explore and manage their life and career choices by focusing on the direct links between further education and personal goals. The program is delivered by volunteers from the local business community providing direct correlation between the lessons and their own personal and professional experiences. Visit Website |
| Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation Canada | Community Engagement Program in CRD | 2015 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Children, Youth, Adults | JDRF’s Community Engagement Program in Victoria delivers support and knowledge to help individuals diagnosed with type 1 diabetes (T1D). Programming includes delivering Bags of Hope full of information and resources to T1D families; connecting the newly diagnosed with T1D mentors who can provide emotional support; and training young people with T1D as youth ambassadors so that they can learn from each other and educate the community at large. This program gives families, children, youth, and adults with T1D the tools, support, and knowledge they need to overcome the challenges of living with diabetes. Visit Website |
| Laren Society Journey From Inside Out | Halfway Home | 2015 | Grantee | Standard of Living | Adults | The Halfway Home project is intended to improve the quality of living for men returning to the community. Life at Bill Mudge House provides an opportunity for residents to re-establish themselves in the community and to move towards self-supported living. This grant will help remediate the living environment by applying fresh paint, replacing deteriorating household items, and purchasing necessary furnishings and appliances to comfortably accommodate eleven men. These essential updates will ensure that residents live with dignity in this therapeutic environment; Laren Society is committed to providing a healthy, home-like environment for its clients. Visit Website |
| Luther Court Society | Dining Room Refurbishment Project | 2015 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Safety | Seniors, Disabled | Nearly 40 years ago when Luther Court opened its doors, the organization purchased a set of dining room chairs for seniors who were still relatively young and mobile. Today, however, the current population is much more physically challenged. Staff frequently need to slide seniors to and from the dining table, which creates significant torque and stress on the furniture. The seniors also require the chairs to have specific functions that allow them to independently stand up and sit on the chairs with safety. The project is the continuation of the refurbishment of the dining room with the goal of replacing 50 chairs with attractive, suitable chairs. Visit Website |
| Mustard Seed Street Church | Food Share Network – Action Plan Implementation Phase 2 | 2015 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Children, Youth, Adults, Seniors | Over the past year, the Food Share Network (FSN) has made significant progress on its Action Plan outlining collaborative initiatives to address food insecurity and poverty in the Capital Regional District, which has integrated programs between non-profits, outlined outcomes and indicators of success, and established shared client metrics. Further, the several pilot projects have been successful in achieving their intended outcomes. Phase 2 will see the continuation of the administration of the FSN and the expansion of the Neighbourhood Food Delivery Program from seven agencies to 12, the operation of the distribution online portal and the farm gleaning pilot. Visit Website |
| O.R.C.C.A. Dental Clinic Society | Certified Dental Assistant Position | 2015 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Children, Youth | O.R.C.C.A. provides dental care to children and adolescents from low income families. Its volunteer dentists, hygienists and Certified Dental Assistants come from dental offices that are each run differently, both in recording and tracking treatments as well as in the kind of instruments used. In order to provide the highest standard of care with consistent treatment plans, prepared instruments, and solid communication, O.R.C.C.A. requires a Certified Dental Assistant on staff to oversee the EXAN Tracking Program and have materials ready for volunteer teams to work. Visit Website |
| Octa Collective Society (artsREACH) | artsREACH In-School Program | 2015 | Grantee | Arts & Culture | Children, Youth | The artsREACH In-School Program provides free 90-minute workshops in visual arts, theatre, and dance through public schools that serve the highest populations of low-income families in the Capital Regional District. Workshops are offered to grade K-5 classes selected by school principals. Taught by professional artists, artsREACH workshops foster imaginative play, encourage individual creativity, and promote teamwork. Teachers learn new skills and techniques by observing artsREACH artistinstructors and all materials are provided free of charge. The program’s goal is to deliver 200 workshops (100 visual arts, 75 dance and 25 theatre) to over 20 schools during the 2015/16 term, a 23 percent increase over 2014/15. Visit Website |
| Pacific North-West Heritage Home Foundation 2013 | Restoration of Heritage Homes, Lectures and Workshops | 2015 | Grantee | Arts & Culture | Adults | The Pacific North-West Heritage Homes Foundation (PNWHHF) proposes to engage local home owners and skilled tradespeople in the art of heritage home restoration. Six expert-led workshops on restoring heritage buildings will be offered to these target audiences at PNWHHF’s museum. The workshops are estimated to reach about 100 people per year. Benefits include generating an appreciation of local architecture and history and creating a fully equipped local venue to build community capacity in applying modern construction technologies and regulations to historic methods and mediums. A post-workshop evaluation of attendees will inform quality improvement and program relevance. Visit Website |
| Pacifica Housing Advisory Association | The Greater Victoria Streets To Homes Program | 2015 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Housing | Adults | Every year the Greater Victoria Streets to Homes Program moves 125 homeless adults directly into permanent market housing while providing customized support to help them stay there. The program secures housing and integrates support services to effectively deliver services to people with mental health issues, substance use issues, generational poverty, brain injury, and other significant health concerns who are homeless. By tailoring the support to the unique needs of each client, the vast majority of clients are successful in maintaining long-term housing. The stabilizing effect of housing reduces a client’s interaction with law-enforcement and use of emergency medical services. Visit Website |
| Pandora Arts Collective Society | Wellbeing From Studio to Community | 2015 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Youth, Adults, Seniors, Disabled | This project will offer twice weekly intergenerational facilitated studio art sessions in two half-year cycles focused on supporting individuals from age 14 to seniors struggling with mental health issues and any others who would find a regular, safe, understanding and creative community importa to their wellbeing. The project will affect 60 to 75 individuals over the year with ten to 20 individuals per week participating in any single studio day. Several workshops and exhibitions will be included as part of the program. Visit Website |
| PEERS Victoria Resources Society | The Dinner Group: Fostering Peer Education and Community Networking | 2015 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | Adults | This project builds on a pilot over the past year and will support two underserved sex worker subpopulations, males and indoor-based escorts, to gather monthly for dinner and a guest presentation. Guest presenters for the pilot included the Victoria Police Department, lawyers, a financial/tax specialist, a physician and sexual health educator, and members of municipal and federal governments. The Dinner Group benefits clients by providing for peer education and increased leadership capacity, and also benefits community by educating the public about the needs of diverse populations of sex workers. This project allows PEERS to expand its program reach. Visit Website |
| Peninsula Streams Society | Environmental Education Project | 2015 | Grantee | Learning | Children, Youth | Peninsula Streams Society (PSS) will continue to deliver its annual environmental education programs to more than 1,250 grade three and grade six students in School Districts 63 and 61, and expand these programs into additional schools. In addition, PSS will work with teachers and community members to develop and deliver a pilot grade five program. With programs in all three grades, PSS will engage students in educational experiences at least three times over their elementary and middle school careers. Students at more than 13 schools participate annually in these programs, in which they learn about concepts of Environment and engage in hands-on ecological restoration and other stewardship activities. Visit Website |
| Phoenix Human Services Association | Rise Up Youth Employment Project | 2015 | Grantee | Housing | Youth, Adults | The Rise Up Youth Employment Project provides skills assessment, pre- employment support and skills training, job development and job placement support to vulnerable youth aged 15-24. Participants may present with a developmental disability, mental health diagnosis, or other identified barriers to community based employment. Rise Up provides an employment support continuum that includes skill discovery and assessment, job readiness development, support accessing and understanding the relationship between benefits and income support, as well as resume and interview preparation. Visit Website |
| Project Literacy Victoria | Literacy Victoria | 2015 | Grantee | Learning | Children, Youth, Adults | After a six-month closure due to financial issues, Literacy Victoria (LV) has restarted operations on a smaller, more focused scale. This project is designed to support the work required to re-establish LV on a strong foundation with a clear vision and solid plan for ensuring a healthy and sustainable organization. Key tasks include implementing and adapting the strategic plan; ensuring the LV vision for the region is practical and sustainable with adequate staff and space; and establishing a strong and realistic financial plan. Visit Website |
| Ptarmigan Music and Theatre Society | Strength Within Arts Workshops | 2015 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | Adults, Seniors, Disabled | Ptarmigan intends to expand its successful Strength Within program to Victoria. Working with local community partners, Ptarmigan will create interactive, educational art programs for people marginalized by illness, disability, poverty and advanced age using music, theatre, dance, filmmaking and the visual arts. Ptarmigan aims to provide inspirational and healing art programs that encourage learning, self-expression, enjoyment, socialization, and improve physical and mental health for participants. This project will support underserved populations so that they can realize their artistic and creative capabilities. Visit Website |
| Raincoast Conservation Foundation | Raincoast kids – Science for coastal conservation education | 2015 | Grantee | Environment | Youth | The Raincoast kids program aims to inform and inspire the next generation of conservation leaders in the Capital Regional District, including the Gulf Islands and local waters of the Salish Sea. Using a decade of experience with marine youth education programs and coastal research, the project will engage youth with regional conservation priorities related to the marine environment, specifically: marine mammal habitat and protection of biodiversity. Raincoast scientists will provide experiential educational outreach, including real-life field work, with participants engaging directly with conservation scientists aboard Raincoast’s research vessel, the Achiever. Visit Website |
| Ready to Rent BC Association | Expanding Walk With Supports to Increase Housing Stability | 2015 | Grantee | Housing | Adults, Seniors | Ready to Rent BC provides tenant education to support housing stability and prevent homelessness. Participants who take Ready to Rent’s RentSmart 12-hour course receive a certificate that many landlords and housing providers recognize in the Capital Regional District, in lieu of references and/or credit checks, which are barriers to housing for many and first-time renters. RentSmart graduates access ‘walk with’ coaching support to help navigate and address any issues or conflicts that may arise around renting. The Expanding Walk With Supports project will develop a training model and manual for this support and expand the service to meet the growing demand. Visit Website |
| Rocky Point Bird Observatory Society | Monitoring migratory bird populations | 2015 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Environment | Youth, Adults | Rocky Point Bird Observatory has been monitoring the populations of birds breeding in the region since 1994. Birds are key indicators of the health and sustainability of the natural environment, and this ongoing project helps to assess whether natural or human-caused changes are negatively impacting our natural spaces. The long-term data from this project is also used to assess changes in bird populations at a national and continental scale. In addition, Rocky Point Bird Observatory trains numerous volunteers and interns in field techniques, preparing many of them for future careers as wildlife biologists. Visit Website |
| Saanich Neighbourhood Place | Tillicum Early Years Hub | 2015 | Grantee | Getting Started | Children | This pilot project will provide one-stop wrap-around services for families with young children to improve health and developmental outcomes. The Hub will offer access to childcare, health screening, early intervention and special needs services, nutrition resources, family counselling and support, parent education, and links to other services such as employment, immigration and housing programs. The Hub will offer a seamless continuum of support, beginning with pre- and post-natal information, parent-infant activities and infant/toddler childcare. Funding is requested for the planning of the Hub, including working closely with partners to coordinate service delivery. Visit Website |
| Saanich Volunteer Services Society | Macular Degeneration Peer Support Group | 2015 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Health & Wellness | Seniors, Disabled | Saanich Volunteer Services Society’s Macular Degeneration Peer Support Group provides an opportunity for seniors who have this irreversible condition to come together to share challenges, learn coping strategies, and avoid isolation. SVSS is uniquely positioned to identify isolated seniors experiencing vision loss, coordinate transportation to the group meetings, and direct family and caregivers to additional sources of support. The program facilitates discussion around stigma, grief and anger as well as transition and acceptance. The peer support group connects participants to each other and to community resources in an effort to encourage healthy adaptations, continued independent living, and increased community involvement. Visit Website |
| Salt Spring Island Farmland Trust Society | Salt Spring Island Farm Centre for Food Security | 2015 | Grantee | Economy | Children, Youth, Adults | The Farm Centre for Food Security, a community food hub, addresses identified needs on Salt Spring Island for local food storage, coordinated distribution, value-added processing and meals, and food literacy. The Development Permit is approved and the Master Plan is completed for full construction and implementation of the Centre. The Centre will support increased local food production (target of a 25 percent increase in first five years), provide job experience for vulnerable individuals, improve access to healthy local food, and increase community resilience. Funds requested will support Phase 1 of developing the Centre, including renovation of the existing barn, installation of utilities, providing workshop programs, setting up winter food storage, and beginning land reclamation. Visit Website |
| SeaChange Marine Conservation Society | The Restoration of Shores | 2015 | Grantee | Environment | Children, Youth, Adults, Seniors, First Nations | SeaChange is planning a beach enhancement project in Tod Inlet that will demonstrate to thousands of park visitors the advantages of an erosion control strategy for low wave-energy shores. Funding is requested for the third planning phase of the project that will include the following: developing a project design and work plan; engaging with BC Parks, the Tsartlip Nation, coastal engineers and other project partners; and presenting the project to the public. The beach enhancement project will provide for an increase in marine biodiversity on a degraded shore affected by historical cement manufacturing, with the goal of restoring areas traditionally harvested for food by the Saanich First Nations. Visit Website |
| Shoreline Community School Association | Shoreline Youth Empowerment Programs | 2015 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | Children, Youth | Funding is requested for Shoreline’s Youth Empowerment Programs, including its Girls Empowerment Mission that engages at-risk females ages ten to 14 by strengthening self-esteem and self-confidence through participation in experiential activities. These include physical, introspective, skill development and leadership activities. Most of the leadership activities will encourage community participation and the girls’ involvement in community initiatives such as Resilient Neighbourhoods and environment and sustainable food projects. Funding is also requested for Shoreline’s After- School Club and Nights Alive, co-ed youth programs that provide a safe, supervised environment for students to participate in after school sports and recreational and leadership activities. Visit Website |
| Society for Kids at Tennis | Society for Kids at Tennis (KATS) | 2015 | Grantee | Sport & Recreation | Children, Youth | The mission of KATS is to provide free tennis lessons and equipment to financially disadvantaged children in Victoria. Benefits include enhanced physical literacy, fitness, emotional and social well-being. The recently released 2015 ParticipACTION Report Card on Physical Activity for Children and Youth assigns a grade of D-, stating: ” Overall, only 9% of 5- to 17-year olds get the 60 minutes of heart-pumping activity they need”. Encouragingly, Victoria’s Vital Signs awards a B+ for sports and recreation, however, with kids spending up to six hours per day on their “screens”, the incidence of childhood obesity is climbing at an alarming rate. Visit Website |
| Sooke Family Resource Society | Prenatal Education and Outreach Program | 2015 | Grantee | Getting Started | Children, Youth, Adult | The Prenatal Education and Outreach Program provides pregnancy education, prenatal and postnatal support, and outreach to the greater Sooke community through local, accessible group and individual services. The program serves 50 to 75 pregnant women annually through four prenatal courses and over 250 one-on-one outreach sessions. The courses and services provide participants with the opportunity to gain knowledge and confidence, increase their awareness of community resources, and develop a shared sense of community identity. The overall goal of this program is to support the health and wellbeing of new babies and their families in the community. Visit Website |
| South Island Centre for Counselling and Training Society | Providing Affordable Counselling for Children and Youth: Bridging the Gap | 2015 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Children, Youth | South Island Centre for Counselling and Training has been steadily expanding to become an additional community resource available for children and youth in the greater Victoria area. The Centre has been providing professional, affordable counselling services without waits to those in need on an income-based sliding fee scale since 1975. In a concerted effort to support the mental health services network available for children and youth (and their families) in the Victoria area, the Centre is focusing on further expanding our services to concentrate on this neglected cohort to address and alleviate some of the pressing need. Visit Website |
| Story Theatre Productions Society | Professional Video Creation | 2015 | Grantee | Arts & Culture | Children | Story Theatre is a low-tech Victoria-based theatre company that promotes literacy and the use of stories, primarily for elementary school audiences. Story Theatre has been told by government funders and touring partners that it needs to have professional-quality videos to show both funding and showcasing juries. This project is to produce two full-length videos of Story Theatre’s touring shows as well as a comprehensive promotional video, all of which would be edited into shorter segments. This would allow the company to promote Story Theatre in a number of ways, including on its website and on YouTube. Visit Website |
| The Nature Conservancy of Canada | Connecting Victorians to the Natural World Around Us | 2015 | Grantee | Learning | Youth, Adults, Seniors | The Nature Conservancy of Canada will host eight to ten public events in the Greater Victoria area in 2016 to further engage Victorians with the natural environment that surrounds us. Four of the events will be Nature Talks, a speaker series with local conservation experts. An additional four conservation volunteer events will feature field experts and offer a chance for participants to get their hands dirty in the field. All events will provide Victorians an opportunity to learn more about the natural environment and to engage with local experts about a variety of environmental topics. Visit Website |
| The Other Guys Theatre Company Society | Creating Legends: BC In Song | 2015 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Adults, Seniors | Director/Composer Ross Desprez and Musical Director/Composer Tobin Stokes, both from The Other Guys Theatre, composed 22 original songs and created a theatrical piece that includes West Coast events transformed from historical moments into folk legends. The original compositions will be performed by five of Victoria’s finest actors and musicians against a backdrop of multimedia archival imagery sourced from the Royal BC Museum and Archives. Creating Legends: BC in Songwill premiere in Victoria in 2016, in partnership with the RBCM. The goal is take this play on tour to BC communities in 2017 to celebrate Canada’s 150th Anniversary. Director/Composer Ross Desprez and Musical Director/Composer Tobin Stokes, both from The Other Guys Theatre, composed 22 original songs and created a theatrical piece that includes West Coast events transformed from historical moments into folk legends. The original compositions will be performed by five of Victoria’s finest actors and musicians against a backdrop of multimedia archival imagery sourced from the Royal BC Museum and Archives. Creating Legends: BC in Songwill premiere in Victoria in 2016, in partnership with the RBCM. The goal is take this play on tour to BC communities in 2017 to celebrate Canada’s 150th Anniversary. Director/Composer Ross Desprez and Musical Director/Composer Tobin Stokes, both from The Other Guys Theatre, composed 22 original songs and created a theatrical piece that includes West Coast events transformed from historical moments into folk legends. The original compositions will be performed by five of Victoria’s finest actors and musicians against a backdrop of multimedia archival imagery sourced from the Royal BC Museum and Archives. Creating Legends: BC in Songwill premiere in Victoria in 2016, in partnership with the RBCM. The goal is take this play on tour to BC communities in 2017 to celebrate Canada’s 150th Anniversary. Director/Composer Ross Desprez and Musical Director/Composer Tobin Stokes, both from The Other Guys Theatre, composed 22 original songs and created a theatrical piece that includes West Coast events transformed from historical moments into folk legends. The original compositions will be performed by five of Victoria’s finest actors and musicians against a backdrop of multimedia archival imagery sourced from the Royal BC Museum and Archives. Creating Legends: BC in Songwill premiere in Victoria in 2016, in partnership with the RBCM. The goal is take this play on tour to BC communities in 2017 to celebrate Canada’s 150th Anniversary. Director/Composer Ross Desprez and Musical Director/Composer Tobin Stokes, both from The Other Guys Theatre, composed 22 original songs and created a theatrical piece that includes West Coast events transformed from historical moments into folk legends. The original compositions will be performed by five of Victoria’s finest actors and musicians against a backdrop of multimedia archival imagery sourced from the Royal BC Museum and Archives. Creating Legends: BC in Songwill premiere in Victoria in 2016, in partnership with the RBCM. The goal is take this play on tour to BC communities in 2017 to celebrate Canada’s 150th Anniversary. Director/Composer Ross Desprez and Musical Director/Composer Tobin Stokes, both from The Other Guys Theatre, composed 22 original songs and created a theatrical piece that includes West Coast events transformed from historical moments into folk legends. The original compositions will be performed by five of Victoria’s finest actors and musicians against a backdrop of multimedia archival imagery sourced from the Royal BC Museum and Archives. Creating Legends: BC in Songwill premiere in Victoria in 2016, in partnership with the RBCM. The goal is take this play on tour to BC communities in 2017 to celebrate Canada’s 150th Anniversary. Director/Composer Ross Desprez and Musical Director/Composer Tobin Stokes, both from The Other Guys Theatre, composed 22 original songs and created a theatrical piece that includes West Coast events transformed from historical moments into folk legends. The original compositions will be performed by five of Victoria’s finest actors and musicians against a backdrop of multimedia archival imagery sourced from the Royal BC Museum and Archives. Creating Legends: BC in Songwill premiere in Victoria in 2016, in partnership with the RBCM. The goal is take this play on tour to BC communities in 2017 to celebrate Canada’s 150th Anniversary. Director/Composer Ross Desprez and Musical Director/Composer Tobin Stokes, both from The Other Guys Theatre, composed 22 original songs and created a theatrical piece that includes West Coast events transformed from historical moments into folk legends. The original compositions will be performed by five of Victoria’s finest actors and musicians against a backdrop of multimedia archival imagery sourced from the Royal BC Museum and Archives. Creating Legends: BC in Songwill premiere in Victoria in 2016, in partnership with the RBCM. The goal is take this play on tour to BC communities in 2017 to celebrate Canada’s 150th Anniversary. Director/Composer Ross Desprez and Musical Director/Composer Tobin Stokes, both from The Other Guys Theatre, composed 22 original songs and created a theatrical piece that includes West Coast events transformed from historical moments into folk legends. The original compositions will be performed by five of Victoria’s finest actors and musicians against a backdrop of multimedia archival imagery sourced from the Royal BC Museum and Archives. Creating Legends: BC in Songwill premiere in Victoria in 2016, in partnership with the RBCM. The goal is take this play on tour to BC communities in 2017 to celebrate Canada’s 150th Anniversary. Director/Composer Ross Desprez and Musical Director/Composer Tobin Stokes, both from The Other Guys Theatre, composed 22 original songs and created a theatrical piece that includes West Coast events transformed from historical moments into folk legends. The original compositions will be performed by five of Victoria’s finest actors and musicians against a backdrop of multimedia archival imagery sourced from the Royal BC Museum and Archives. Creating Legends: BC in Songwill premiere in Victoria in 2016, in partnership with the RBCM. The goal is take this play on tour to BC communities in 2017 to celebrate Canada’s 150th Anniversary. Director/Composer Ross Desprez and Musical Director/Composer Tobin Stokes, both from The Other Guys Theatre, composed 22 original songs and created a theatrical piece that includes West Coast events transformed from historical moments into folk legends. The original compositions will be performed by five of Victoria’s finest actors and musicians against a backdrop of multimedia archival imagery sourced from the Royal BC Museum and Archives. Creating Legends: BC in Songwill premiere in Victoria in 2016, in partnership with the RBCM. The goal is take this play on tour to BC communities in 2017 to celebrate Canada’s 150th Anniversary. Director/Composer Ross Desprez and Musical Director/Composer Tobin Stokes, both from The Other Guys Theatre, composed 22 original songs and created a theatrical piece that includes West Coast events transformed from historical moments into folk legends. The original compositions will be performed by five of Victoria’s finest actors and musicians against a backdrop of multimedia archival imagery sourced from the Royal BC Museum and Archives. Creating Legends: BC in Songwill premiere in Victoria in 2016, in partnership with the RBCM. The goal is take this play on tour to BC communities in 2017 to celebrate Canada’s 150th Anniversary. Director/Composer Ross Desprez and Musical Director/Composer Tobin Stokes, both from The Other Guys Theatre, composed 22 original songs and created a theatrical piece that includes West Coast events transformed from historical moments into folk legends. The original compositions will be performed by five of Victoria’s finest actors and musicians against a backdrop of multimedia archival imagery sourced from the Royal BC Museum and Archives. Creating Legends: BC in Songwill premiere in Victoria in 2016, in partnership with the RBCM. The goal is take this play on tour to BC communities in 2017 to celebrate Canada’s 150th Anniversary. Director/Composer Ross Desprez and Musical Director/Composer Tobin Stokes, both from The Other Guys Theatre, composed 22 original songs and created a theatrical piece that includes West Coast events transformed from historical moments into folk legends. The original compositions will be performed by five of Victoria’s finest actors and musicians against a backdrop of multimedia archival imagery sourced from the Royal BC Museum and Archives. Creating Legends: BC in Songwill premiere in Victoria in 2016, in partnership with the RBCM. The goal is take this play on tour to BC communities in 2017 to celebrate Canada’s 150th Anniversary. Director/Composer Ross Desprez and Musical Director/Composer Tobin Stokes, both from The Other Guys Theatre, composed 22 original songs and created a theatrical piece that includes West Coast events transformed from historical moments into folk legends. The original compositions will be performed by five of Victoria’s finest actors and musicians against a backdrop of multimedia archival imagery sourced from the Royal BC Museum and Archives. Creating Legends: BC in Songwill premiere in Victoria in 2016, in partnership with the RBCM. The goal is take this play on tour to BC communities in 2017 to celebrate Canada’s 150th Anniversary. |
| The Sooke Philharmonic Society | Sooke Harmony Project | 2015 | Grantee | Getting Started | Children | The Sooke Harmony Project (SHP) plans to offer free music instruction to low-income children ages six to 12 in the Sooke region. The SHP engages children in music lessons and rehearsals, builds orchestras with these children in their own neighbourhoods, and arranges field trips to concerts and special events. Each student will receive an instrument to take home, and all are enrolled in group classes or private lessons. Beyond improving their musical abilities, children develop life skills, make academic progress, increase their cultural awareness, and create strong connections. They also learn to collaborate, lead, and perform as a unit. Visit Website |
| Theatre SKAM Association | Shop Talk | 2015 | Grantee | Arts & Culture | Adults | Shop Talkis a live theatre performance that examines sexual politics in the workplace. Created by Theatre SKAM, the performance takes place in an actual carpentry shop where the audience watches the action of the play unfold amid the construction of a set for an opera. The plot focuses on Sarah, a carpenter, who faces the challenge of working in a male dominated workplace. The production employs 27 people, features a female director and an all-female design and production team, and showcases a 15-member cast. Visit Website |
| Threshold Housing Society | Safe Housing For Youth (SHY Program) | 2015 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Housing | Youth | The Safe Housing for Youth Program is a transitional housing program for youth ages 18 to 22 who are at risk of becoming homeless. Through the program, staff search out “youth-friendly” landlords, set up youth safely in rental accommodation, and provide support for transitional planning. Youth are also involved in an intense life-skill program to ensure they become self-supporting and self-reliant, and participate in school completion or other day programs. Their aim is to move toward their goals, while the aim of Threshold is to provide a safe environment for at-risk youth to achieve those goals. Threshold mentors youth from being “at-risk” to being “at promise.” Visit Website |
| T’Sou-ke Nation (Ladybug Garden & Greenhouse) | WUI CIST CEN TOL | 2015 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | First Nations, Youth, Seniors | WUI,CIST CEN,TOL brings elders and youth together to grow and forage for foods, medicinal herbs and traditional seafoods on the traditional territories of the T’Sou-ke Nation. This enriches the knowledge of youth in regards to their culture, heritage and traditional ways incorporating the language by naming the plants they forage. The WUI,CIST CEN,TOL gardening and foraging project promotes healthy eating and active living with hikes for exercise and endurance, and teaches sustainability through workshops on food preservation, drying and storing. Using the T’Sou-ke Nation’s traditional territories as an “outdoor classroom” for outings and the gardens to promote healthy living within the community, this project aims to teach members about indigenous food systems and to encourage self-sufficiency. Visit Website |
| Umbrella Society for Addictions and Mental Health | Strengthening Family Physician Response to Addicted Patients | 2015 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Health & Wellness | Youth, Adults, Seniors | Umbrella has many years of experience helping people struggling with addictions to navigate multiple systems of care. Family physicians, both in private practice and walk-in settings, are ideally placed to identify patients for whom substance use has become a problem and can initiate that first, often very difficult, conversation with them. Their pace of practice is driven by the current fee structure and this often prohibits follow-up beyond further office visits. This project will provide a path for family physicians to refer patients to Umbrella, whose outreach workers will offer a variety of one-to one support and follow them closely in the community. Visit Website |
| Vancouver Island Men’s Trauma Counselling Society | Post-Trauma Road to Recovery: Stage 2 group for men with PTSD | 2015 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Adults | The Men’s Trauma Centre provides victim support services and individual and group counselling to men who have experienced trauma. Trauma is an emotional wound that creates lasting damage to development and include physical, emotional or sexual abuse. The Centre is experienced in providing specialist groups for men, including a Stage 1 group helping men recover from Post Traumatic Stress Disorder that has been very successful. Funding is requested to develop a pilot Stage 2 PTSD counselling group for men that will build on the work done in Stage 1, with results to be shared with other organizations. Visit Website |
| Vancouver Island Providence Community Association | Learning, Engaging, & Growing in Providence Farm Greenhouse | 2015 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Learning | Adults | The Nursery/Greenhouse Program at Providence Farm provides horticultural therapy, education, and skills training for individuals with mental health issues, brain injuries, developmental and learning disabilities, and physical challenges. Twelve to fifteen adults access this program area each day, year round. The project is to enhance the Greenhouse with new propagation tables & benches, composting and soil sterilizing, etc. thereby becoming an even more viable learning and growing space and creating improved training opportunities for a disadvantaged sector of the community. The training is appropriate for all abilities, and focuses on improving confidence, social interaction, horticultural skills, work habits, and physical ability. Visit Website |
| Via Choralis Performance Society | South American Spring – “Songs of the Amazon” | 2015 | Grantee | Arts & Culture | Youth, Adults | Via Choralis Performance Society is continuing performance in 2016 as a high quality arts & culture organization which will draw singers from the CRD to collaborate in a rare event that is both interesting intellectually and musically. The project provides performance and musical educational opportunities to student vocalists and musicians, taking place in the Town of Sidney and in the City of Victoria. The project provides a unique repertoire which has not been performed in the Capital Region and will premiere a work by a local composer. Partial proceeds will be donated to Jeneece Place. Visit Website |
| Victoria Choral Society | Mendelssohn Concert 2016 | 2015 | Grantee | Arts & Culture | Youth, Adults, Seniors | Victoria Choral Society will produce a concert on April 10, 2016 featuring major choral works by Mendelssohn and Brahms, including Mendelssohn’s Symphony #2 (Hymn of Praise) and Brahms’ Song of Destiny. This concert will bring these great choral-symphonic masterworks to the Victoria-area audience and provide an opportunity to hear the first performance of the Hymn of Praise in Victoria in nearly 60 years! The project will also benefit the local music community, as VCS will be hiring 38 instrumentalists and three soloists. In addition, VCS will reach out to youth, disadvantaged people, and community groups through complimentary or reduced-cost tickets. Visit Website |
| Victoria Community Food Hub Society | Neighborhood Food Networks Exploratory | 2015 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Children, Youth, Adults, Seniors | This project will support the development of a network of neighbourhood based food hubs in the Capital Region. It will build on existing social and physical infrastructure in schools, municipal facilities, and community organizations to increase access to fresh, healthy food and improve community food literacy. Through establishment of a Neighbourhood Food Networks Working Group, participating agencies will take the next steps to identify neighbourhood assets, create an online food wiki tool, and develop an aligned workplan around shared priorities. This upstream project will engage local governments, schools and regional organizations to strengthen these efforts through programs, resources and supportive policy. Visit Website |
| Victoria Compost and Conservation Education Society (Victoria Compost Education Centre) | Healing City Soils | 2015 | Grantee | Environment | Youth, Adults, Seniors | The goal of the Healing City Soils project is to create a virtual soil map of Victoria to make community members aware of potential contamination in their backyard or boulevard soil and empower them with the knowledge and skills to grow food safely based on that awareness. A workshop and fact sheet series about soil remediation and basic food growing skills will be created. Five neighbourhoods will be initially involved in the mapping process, and students from Camosun College’s Environmental Technology program will lead research in each neighbourhood and coordinate soil testing through their campus lab. Visit Website |
| Victoria Conservatory of Music | Getting Started – Early Childhood Music Outreach | 2015 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Getting Started | Children | This project will expand the current VCM Music Library into a community-wide music library/resource centre accessible to all. In collaboration with School District 61, the project will open doors to the District’s extensive Choral Octavo collection. Both organizations’ annotated collections of scores will be available for loan to community groups. As well, VCM will launch a new free children’s Musical Story Time on-site in the VCM Library and at more than 40 satellite locations throughout Greater Victoria. Founded in 1964, the Victoria Conservatory of Music (VCM) has earned an outstanding reputation for quality in education, performance and music therapy. As a music school for the whole community, the VCM welcomes students of all ages and musical abilities, and teaches in all musical genres including classical, contemporary and music technology. Each year, over 4,500 students take part in an extensive array of disciplines including woodwinds, brass, percussion, keyboard, strings, voice, jazz, theory and composition, and programs such as music therapy, teacher training, early children’s music and children’s outreach programs, and Summer Music Academies. In addition, the VCM offers a two-year performance-oriented post-secondary diploma program in partnership with Camosun College. As a registered charity, the VCM relies on vital financial support to fund 35% of overall operating revenue to enrich the community with accessible music education and performance. Visit Website |
| Victoria Hospice Society | Sacred Art of Living and Dying Outcomes – A quality care improvement study | 2015 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Health & Wellness | Adults, Seniors | Hospice care aims to treat both the physical pain caused by terminal illnesses, and the mental, social and spiritual issues that come from facing one’s own mortality. End-of-life patients frequently report, however, that their medical care team does not attend to their spiritual needs. Last year Victoria Hospice became the Canadian pilot site for an education program designed to help caregivers better integrate spiritual support into their practice of care. The proposed study will evaluate the effectiveness of that program in improving patient outcomes, and will identify challenges and strategies for integrating more spiritual support at hospices throughout Canada. Visit Website |
| Victoria Humane Society | Sled Dog Fostering and Adoption Project | 2015 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Children, Youth, Adults, Seniors | The Victoria Humane Society will rescue, rehabilitate, spay/neuter, socialize, foster and adopt out over 50 sled dogs. The sled dogs are anxious, nervous and timid around people and require special care to prepare them for adoption. With the right care and a lot of patience, the majority of sled dogs are quick to learn, becoming incredible family pets as they adapt to a new way of life that includes cars, noise, stairs, furniture, leashes and toys. Potential families will be screened to ensure they are the right match for each of these unique dogs. Visit Website |
| Victoria Philharmonic Choir Society | Mozart/Haydn Choral Concert | 2015 | Grantee | Arts & Culture | Youth, Adults, Seniors | VPC, an auditioned, multi-generational organization, has become a vital part of the region’s musical culture. Support is needed for a March 2016 choral concert featuring works by Mozart and Haydn. The Greater Victoria audience will be thrilled with another outstanding major classical performance by the VPC, orchestra and soloists. An all-ages event, the concert offers incentives for young people to attend or participate, promoting accessibility. Choristers benefit with improved vocal capacity and a deeper sense of belonging by working together to create the event. Visit Website |
| Victoria READ Society | Designing a Collaborative Literacy “Alliance” for Greater Victoria: Development of a Strategy Roadmap | 2015 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Learning | Children, Youth, Adults | The existing model for providing literacy support services in Greater Victoria is no longer viable. A core group of agencies have been working together to establish a broad consortium of stakeholders to develop a more collaborative approach that will better serve the needs of the community and achieve greater efficiencies in service delivery. Building on the results of a Challenge Dialogue, this project will support the creation of a Strategy Roadmap that connects and integrates the necessary actions, outcomes, goals and impacts into a coherent visual strategy. The Roadmap is a key next step in the design, development and implementation of a literacy “alliance.” Visit Website |
| Victoria Restorative Justice Society (Restorative Justice Victoria) |
Advanced Volunteer Skills Training | 2015 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | Children, Youth, Adults, Seniors | Through this project, bi-monthly skill enhancement workshops will be offered for over 70 volunteers and staff from local Restorative Justice Victoria agencies to help advance caseworker abilities and foster volunteer engagement. Two years ago, funding from the Victoria Foundation provided advanced training by a local mediator. The proposed workshops move outside the realm of mediation to allow caseworkers to adeptly navigate recurring themes in referred cases (for example, mental illness, serious crimes, clients in crisis, and youth disengagement). These workshops will allow Restorative Justice to offer a more holistic approach to promoting belonging and social cohesion in personal and community relationships. Visit Website |
| Victoria Sexual Assault Centre Society | Resisting Violence Through Food Justice and Social Action | 2015 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Belonging & Engagement | Youth | This project encourages youth to explore the connections between gender-based violence, colonization and food justice. This project includes: preserving salmon; a camp to explore topics of food justice and sexualize violence; teach-outs with local organizations and individuals; cooking and dialogue classes; and social actions. Participants will have the opportunity to explore their experiences of power, oppression, and privilege; make connections between gender-based violence, colonialism and food justice; and learn how everyone can take responsibility for creating personal, social and systemic change to promote healthy relationships and inclusive communities. Visit Website |
| Victoria Single Parent Resource Centre (1UP) | Resiliency Stream: Building Healthy Single Parent Families | 2015 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Standard of Living | Children, Youth, Adults, Seniors | Resiliency Stream courses develop the innate capacity of low-income, isolated single parents to care for themselves and their children and to develop self-reliance, self-esteem and effective life skills that result in healthier and more resilient children, families, and communities. Directly addressing many of the single parents’ struggles, 15 courses six to eight weeks long and 12 workshops will be offered in 2016. These courses and workshops will allow over 150 parents to gain the education and confidence they need to move themselves and their families from a position of vulnerability to a position of personal and economic prosperity and inclusion. Visit Website |
| Victoria Symphony Society | Rink Cycle II | 2015 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Arts & Culture | Youth, Adults, First Nations | In February 2007, the Victoria Symphony joined with School District 61 in producing the Rink Cycle, an event in which hundreds of music students joined with the Symphony in a performance at the Save-On-Foods Memorial Centre. For Rink Cycle II: Canada and the Future, the Symphony will build on the previous work with new repertoire; an expanded group of schools; more involvement for students who sing; a movement component for students who are not specifically studying music; a collaboration with First Nations schoolchildren and performing artists; and a commissioned work using traditional First Nations music, themes and stories. Visit Website |
| Victoria Theatre Guild and Dramatic School (Langham Court Theatre) | Volunteer Learning Program | 2015 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Arts & Culture | Children, Youth, Adults, Seniors | The Victoria Theatre Guild and Dramatic School will initiate a comprehensive learning program in each of its Guilds to re-energize its mandate to provide theatrical learning and address the many requests from its volunteers for learning opportunities. Residents of Victoria come with widely varied experience and abilities to volunteer at the Guild. These learning opportunities, in conjunction with volunteers’ experience at the Langham Court Theatre, will give Guild members the support they need to be more confident and provide them with a more fulfilling creative experience. These learning opportunities will also be offered to non members as an important outreach project of the Guild. Visit Website |
| Victoria Therapeutic Riding Association | Victoria Therapeutic Riding Association Program Funding | 2015 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Health & Wellness | Children, Youth, Adults | Victoria Therapeutic Riding Association provides therapeutic horseback riding programs for individuals with physical, cognitive and social challenges. Funding would support three programs. The Adaptive Riding Program helps meet the physical and occupational therapy goals of each student and provides safe and effective recreation, increasing their overall well-being and fostering a community connection. The Early Intervention Program aids in the physical and cognitive development of at-risk children ages three to five. The Life Skills Program is a pilot that builds on the Adaptive Riding Program by incorporating stable management practices to develop personal responsibility, behavioural regulation and time management skills. Visit Website |
| Wear 2 Start Society | Wear 2 Start Website Project | 2015 | Grantee | Standard of Living | Adults | Wear 2 Start requires a professionally designed website to enhance the service delivery and the sustainability of this volunteer-driven society. The current website is outdated, cumbersome to maintain, and experiencing technical challenges. An updated website will allow Wear 2 Start to integrate social media, recognize its sponsors and donors, reach a new segment of supporters, track metrics and add the capability to receive online donations. This website is essential for Wear 2 Start to raise its community profile and showcase its services so it can continue to meet its mandate to assist and empower low-income women seeking employment to dress their best and gain the confidence to succeed in job interviews. Visit Website |
| West Coast Islands’ Stewardship & Conservancy Society of British Columbia | Food is Medicine: Learning, Celebrating and Revitalising Indigenous Food Systems | 2015 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | First Nations, Youth, Seniors | Knowledge about the healing power of food remains with local Indigenous peoples, who continue to use food in treating illness and injury and maintaining health. There is a deep understanding for many Indigenous peoples that “Food is Medicine.” This project promotes awareness about the medicinal qualities of healthy, local and traditional food to the next generation. Through arts-based workshops led by local Indigenous Elders, youth learn about food’s healing power and create visuals for an Island-wide public campaign on this teaching. In so doing, “Food is Medicine” nourishes health and wellness in a holistic, creative and Indigenous-led way. |
| WorkLink Employment Society | Client Supports Project | 2015 | Grantee | Standard of Living | Adults | WorkLink Employment Society is contracted to provide WorkBC and Service Canada employment services and programs to job-seeking clients. Some governmental financial assistance is available for specific, eligible items required for clients’ participation, but often clients’ needs fall outside the set criteria. Financially destitute individuals may be blocked from programming or accepting jobs if they cannot access funds for required items. Client Supports pays for needed items where no other option exists, including food, communications, industry licences, training-related needs, and transportation. This ensures all clients can access programs and jobs that assist them in becoming self-sufficient through employment or through greater community attachment. Visit Website |
| Young Parents Support Network | Child & Youth Health Network Collective Impact Initiative | 2015 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Children, Youth | The Child & Youth Health Network (C&YHN) is a cross-sector collective impact initiative which is aligning organizations and resources behind the vision of “Communities supporting healthy kids growing into healthy adults raising healthy kids.” In 2016, to ensure that children and youth in the Capital Region thrive, the C&YHN will launch its first five-year campaign and a region-wide shared measurement system. The C&YHN will continue to focus on partnership development to support deep engagement across sectors as a key strategy for creating a healthy and sustainable region through fostering the well-being of young people. Visit Website |
| Access to Media Education Society | Digital Forage: Wisdom Harvest | 2014 | Grantee | Environment | Youth, First Nations | Digital Forage is an intergenerational digital storytelling program that uses technology to bridge generations and to preserve essential knowledge held by local elders. Through a series of school workshops and field trips, elders will share knowledge of wild food foraging, while artists will share skills in photography, digital storytelling and new media production. Coming full circle, youth will share their emerging digital knowledge with their elders and families on SalishHarvest.com, an interactive website that celebrates wild foods and medicines in the Salish Sea. The project’s primary benefits are to provide 24 Galiano students with a chance to increase awareness of wild food foraging and habitat restoration, and to connect with local artists and elders in the creation of 48 place-based digital short stories. Visit Website |
| Action Committee of People with Disabilities Society | ACPD Disability Advocacy Program | 2014 | Grantee | Standard of Living | Adults, Seniors, Disabled | Funding will provide advocacy services for people with disabilities, helping them to navigate provincial and federal application and appeal processes to ensure income security, health care, and the ancillary benefits they are entitled to under legislation. Transitioning from the BC welfare rate of $610 to $906 on Persons with Disability (PWD) status is an enormous jump in equity for someone on low income. Gaining PWD status also saves on clients’ expenditures, as they would be eligible for medical care, medical equipment, free public transportation, subsidized housing, discounted recreational passes, free prescriptions, and more. Most of the Action Committee’s clients are in desperate need of both money and housing. Visit Website |
| Art Gallery of Greater Victoria | Diversity Volunteer Training Project: Growing Opportunities for Diversity in Age & Ethnicity | 2014 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Arts & Culture | Youth, Adults, Seniors | Volunteers are mobilized throughout the Art Gallery of Greater Victoria’s (AGGV) programs. Key findings of research by a student employed by AGGV in 2014 indicate that although existing volunteers are strongly committed, the AGGV could be encouraging more diversity in age and ethnicity, both in its volunteer base and in how programs are offered. Achieving this goal would involve providing training in diversity sensitivity to Gallery staff and volunteers. The research also indicates that the current method of managing volunteers is antiquated and non-responsive. In 2015, the AGGV would like to undertake a project which would grow volunteering opportunities that reflect a diversity of age and ethnicity and introduce a new system for managing volunteers. Visit Website |
| Artemis Place Society | Sponsoring Childcare for Vulnerable Babies | 2014 | Grantee | Getting Started | Children, Youth | Artemis Place is an independent alternative school for teenage girls faced with obstacles such anxiety, foster care, poverty, and trauma. Half of the school’s students have children. The school has an onsite daycare where nurturing, responsive parenting skills are modelled. The school’s most vulnerable mothers can’t commit to full time attendance and are not eligible for a childcare subsidy. Funding requested would sponsor two flexible childcare spaces to support these young families with the goal that the mothers will eventually attend the program full time. Visit Website |
| Arthritis Society – BC & Yukon Division | Arthritis Education Programs and Forums for the Greater Victoria Area | 2014 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Health & Wellness | Adults, Seniors, Disabled | Program staff or highly trained volunteers will deliver 50 free programs (28 educational programs, 12 forums featuring medical specialists, and other presentations and displays) throughout the Greater Victoria area to an estimated total of 2,059 participants. Participants include people who are newly diagnosed or are living with one of the over 100 forms of arthritis, as well as family, caregivers, friends and other adults interested in learning more about these diseases. Research shows that understanding the disease and being pro-active in self-care are key factors in maintaining quality of life. Participants learn about accessing community resources and advances in research, and connect with others facing the same challenges. Visit Website |
| Ballet Victoria Society | AttenDance – Reaching out to seniors living in isolation | 2014 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Health & Wellness | Seniors | The AttenDance program is a companion to Tea for Tutu. Its objective is to specifically target seniors living in isolation and in need of social interaction. The majority of seniors who attend Tea for Tutu are from assisted living facilities. However, many seniors still live in private residences with no staff to see to their needs and organize activities. Many have lost their spouses, are living alone, and have health problems. The AttenDance program will contact those seniors, with the help of partner organizations like James Bay New Horizons, and will offer them social activities such as cooking and computer classes culminating with a chance to see a free ballet performance at a Tea for Tutu event. Visit Website |
| Belfry Theatre Society | The New Incubator Project | 2014 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Arts & Culture | Adults | The New Incubator Project is a means of delivering support, mentorship, and professional development to theatre companies and artists interested in developing new work and exploring new areas of theatrical creation. In an isolated community, this is an essential means of encouraging artistic growth for professional artists, both established and emerging. This is a two-year project involving three independent companies or individual artists. Each will be developing a new theatre piece or exploring new theatrical practices. At least one of the projects will be presented during the Belfry’s SPARK Festival. The New Incubator Project is a major redesign and expansion of a program that has been part of the Belfry Theatre since 2003. Visit Website |
| Big Brothers/Big Sisters of Victoria Capital Region | Focus Mentoring | 2014 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Health & Wellness | Children, Youth | Focus Mentoring is a program for children and youth who have been referred to Big Brothers Big Sisters because they need additional and sustained support in their lives to help manage and overcome significant disadvantages. They live in families that are struggling to cope with mental-health challenges and are requesting a mentor through the Community Mentoring Program. Focus is intended to increase supports to families within BBBS’s target group that live with mental illness and are challenged in parenting and family wellness. It provides relevant training to mentors so that they are better equipped to manage relationships that accommodate the needs of youth, lessen social stigma by focusing on resiliency, and offer the potential of intense long-lasting personal relationships necessary for change and child well-being. Visit Website |
| Blue Bridge Theatre Society | Lighting Up The Village | 2014 | Grantee | Arts & Culture | Adults, Seniors | The Lighting Up The Village is part of a larger initiative of Blue Bridge Theatre to transform the once-derelict Roxy Theatre in Victoria’s Quadra Village into a cultural hub for neighbourhood activity and a resource centre for multiple arts organizations for many years to come. This project will follow on the phase one upgrade of the theatre from 50 amp stage power service to 200 amp service. Funding requested for 2015 will be used to complete the upgrade by purchasing a state of the art lighting console and a communication system that will facilitate front-of-house and backstage communication during performances. Visit Website |
| Boys & Girls Club Services of Greater Victoria | Boys & Girls Club Literacy/Numeracy Program | 2014 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Learning | Children | This project will provide mentoring specific to building skills in literacy and numeracy to the elementary school children in need of extra support, identified by Boys & Girls Club staff in cooperation with teachers and school counsellors. These children may or may not be members of Boys & Girls Club Community Clubs (Esquimalt, VicWest, Langford, Colwood, Central Saanich); however, the program will be offered to children in elementary schools in those areas. Visit Website |
| Bridges for Women Society | Bridges for Women & Peers Capacity-Building Collaboration Project | 2014 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Economy | Adult | This project focuses on the development of capacity for Bridges for Women Society, and in turn, for PEERS Victoria Resource Society. Bridges is partnering with PEERS on a pilot self-employment program based on the Bridges model. The organization aims to increase its efficiency in terms of using up-to-date systems–specifically, client management systems to improve its ability to best serve its clients. This pilot project would allow PEERS and Bridges staff to use a remotely accessible client data system for shared clients. This system could help Bridges collaborate more effectively with PEERS and other partners for shared clients in the future. Visit Website |
| British Columbia Childhood Cancer Parents’ Association | 2015 Paediatric Oncology Family Support Program | 2014 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Children, Youth, Adults | The BCCPA Vancouver Island Chapter provides access to an expanded level of services and support specifically for Island-based families who have children with cancer and blood disorders. When families are stretched to their limit, the BCCPA’s programs help children and their parents navigate their experience during transition back to the home; help to reduce their feelings of stress and isolation; and get access to the supportive resources they need in their community. The Family Support Program in Victoria provides targeted, caring services for local families who have a child with cancer. Program activities include on-site support during treatment, family support initiatives, individual support and program referrals, and emergency assistance. Visit Website |
| Burnside Gorge Community Association | Youth Self Sufficiency | 2014 | Grantee | Getting Started | Youth | The Burnside Gorge Community Association’s Youth Self Sufficiency (YSS) Program supports youth who are in foster care, on Youth Agreements, or entirely without supports as they transition into adulthood. Working with youth aged 17-19, for up to three years, YSS takes an asset based approach encompassing the following areas: housing, employment, education, relationship and trust building, life skills, identity and emotional healing. Working one on one with Youth Advisors, participants assess their needs, identify goals, and develop action plans to meet those goals. Youth Advisors support youth to become self-reliant as they “age out” of care. Youth learn how to make smart, healthy decisions and access the skills and tools (such as housing readiness and spending plans) necessary for a successful future. Visit Website |
| Canadian Diabetes Association | Walk and Talk An Activity Based Program for Diabetes Self-Management and Prevention | 2014 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Adults, Seniors | ‘Walk and Talk” is a free ten-week program that teaches the principles of diabetes self-management for those living with or at risk of diabetes. Participants meet weekly to learn new skills from professionals such as dietitians, podiatrists, diabetes educators and fitness instructors. The one-hour sessions include a group walk with peers and the guest speaker. Participants receive weekly wellness resources to add to their toolkit and work towards completing a 3 or 5-kilometre walk. The program empowers people to self-manage their diabetes, creates a supportive environment for individuals to engage in physical activity, and provides access to experts in a positive, proactive setting. Visit Website |
| Canadian Light Music Society | Palm Court Light Orchestra 2015 Concerts | 2014 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | Adults, Seniors | The project will provide financial support for concerts by the Palm Court Light Orchestra at the UVic University Centre in Victoria, the Charlie White Theatre in Sidney, and the Cowichan Theatre in Duncan. The Orchestra, now in its 28th year, concentrates on a musical style known as “palm court,” which is essentially light orchestral music. It presents rarely performed music from the pre-WW II era. In 2015, it will present concerts entitled “Valentine Diva,” “Around the World in 80 Days,” and “On the Road to Mandalay.” The palm court audience, which is 90 percent seniors, enjoys the particular music and appreciates the daytime concerts and reasonable ticket prices. The concerts are both educational and creative and are also part of building community. Visit Website |
| Canadian National Institute for the Blind | Ensuring Accessibility for British Columbians with Vision Loss | 2014 | Grantee | Standard of Living | Children, Youth, Adults, Seniors, Disabled | Many Canadians with vision loss are excluded from social and economic opportunities. 65 percent of working-age adults with vision loss are unemployed and 50 percent earn less than $20,000 per year. Only 45 percent of blind or partially sighted Canadian children graduate high school (compared to 90 percent of sighted kids). To tackle these challenges, CNIB Specialists will conduct assessments and make recommendations for customized assistive technology based on individual needs. The project will expand the stock of existing devices such as DAISY players, screen readers, and screen and video magnifiers to reduce the growing wait list for these technologies. It aims to encourage independence by giving those with vision loss the tools to function with freedom and confidence in day-to-day life. Visit Website |
| Canadian Red Cross Society – Western Zone | Eliminating Wait Times for Equipment Loans at the Victoria Red Cross HELP Depot | 2014 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Adults, Seniors, Disabled | Funding will be used to purchase an industrial medical equipment disinfection machine (called a Hubscrub) that will double the speed with which the Victoria Red Cross HELP Depot can sanitize returned equipment and make it available for re-loan. With the Victoria senior demographic increasing, the demand for free, by-donation loans of basic mobility and home safety equipment (e.g. walkers, wheelchairs, bath chairs) and advanced equipment (e.g. hospital beds, patient lifts, electric wheelchairs) is set to double in the coming decades. An additional Hubscrub will immediately reduce current client wait times for specialized equipment that will keep seniors comfortable and safe as they convalesce in the home. Visit Website |
| Capital Mental Health Association | Restful Creations | 2014 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Adults, Seniors, Disabled | Funding will contribute to the Greater Victoria community by providing services to Alzheimer’s/dementia clients and their caregivers to support them to remain in their homes. This project will provide caregivers with respite, freeing them for self-care activities each Saturday for 4 hours. In addition, clients will be offered art and music therapy, a nutritional lunch, exercise, and activities. A qualified worker will ensure their safety and security. This is a one-year pilot program with an implementation date of January 2015, which coincides with Alzheimer’s Awareness Month. Visit Website |
| CCPA – Canadian Heritage Arts Society | Capacity and Sustainability 2015 | 2014 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Arts & Culture | Youth, Adults, Seniors | This project will build capacity for the Canadian College of Performing Arts (CCPA) to ensure its sustainability. CCPA is in need of a new facility to house its operations, offer its educational programming and create a sense of community with Greater Victoria residents. The first step is to establish a good annual giving program with strong donor relationships and effective data management that will create the platform for a future capital campaign. Funding for this project will support hiring a full-time Development Officer to implement the donor and fundraising program during 2015. Visit Website |
| Community Arts Council Of The Saanich Peninsula | Sidney Fine Art Show 2015 Capacity Building Project | 2014 | Grantee | Arts & Culture | Adults, Seniors | The Community Arts Council of the Saanich Peninsula (CACSP) has managed the Sidney Fine Art Show for the past 11 years. This world-class juried art show, which is open to artists in all media, receives approximately 6,000 visitors each year. The Show has been administered entirely by volunteers, with over 300 involved annually. Since its inception in 2003, the show has continued to grow and improve. Funds shall be used to support existing staff, strengthen volunteer leadership, and undertake activities related to financial and strategic planning and capacity building. Visit Website |
| Crisis Intervention and Public Information Society of Greater Victoria (NEED2) | Youth Suicide Prevention Program-from Distress to De-Stress | 2014 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Youth | The overarching goal of NEED2’s Youth Suicide Prevention Program is to prevent youth suicide by helping youth successfully negotiate periods of crisis, and providing suicide and mental health awareness education and online emotional support. The program addresses a gap in mental health support services and presents strategies for healthier coping strategies. Through funding for this program, NEED2 will increase its capacity to respond to youth on-line, more youth will have tools for reducing stress and coping positively, and youth will have somewhere to go for emotional and crisis support when other services are not available (evenings, weekends). Visit Website |
| Dance Victoria Society | Strategic Planning | 2014 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Arts & Culture | Youth, Adults, Seniors | Dance Victoria, currently in a period of significant transition and renewal, seeks to engage an outside consultant to assist staff and board in updating the current strategic plan with special attention given to financial planning and management in the short, medium, and long term. Visit Website |
| Downtown Blanshard Advisory Committee | Quadra Village Girls Program | 2014 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | Children, Youth | The Quadra Village Girls Program is designed to serve youth ages 9 to 19 in the Quadra-Hillside community who are at risk, have multiple barriers, and are in need of extra support. The program hosts two weekly girls groups (ages 9-13 and ages 14-19) focused on mental health education, safety and recreation activities. The program provides youth with a safe environment in which to build self-worth, connect to the community, and form relationships with each other while learning about healthy living and accessing ongoing support from the professional staff team. Visit Website |
| Evergreen | Uncover Your Creeks | 2014 | Grantee | Environment | Youth, Adults | The Uncover Your Creeks program promotes holistic management of freshwater ecosystems by engaging volunteers in monthly stewardship events in the ecologically sensitive Tod Creek watershed. Pressures from residential development, food production, and recreation threaten the integrity of the Creek, the pristine Maltby Lake, and the watershed as a whole. Through this program, Evergreen and its local partners, including the Friends of Tod Creek Watershed and the District of Saanich, will train volunteer stewards to restore the riparian zone; identify threats to watershed health by collecting water quality data; and coordinate bi-annual water science workshops to engage volunteers, partners, and community members in dialogue about pertinent local issues. Visit Website |
| Friends Uniting for Nature Society | FUN Society Camps | 2014 | Grantee | Environment | Children, Youth | Through community funded support, the FUN Society has provided environmental education, peer support, and outdoor activity to one third of its “FUN Camps” campers since 2008. Continued funding helps ensure that children and youth from low-income and at-risk backgrounds are free to attend without any artificial barriers. This initiative, and “FUN Champs”, FUN Society’s awards-based social change program, provide financial support and mentorship to local children and youth to help them turn their dreams of creating a better, more sustainable world into reality. Visit Website |
| Galiano Club | Galiano Club Community Food Program – Food for Thought | 2014 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | Seniors | The Galiano Community Food Program’s ”Food for Thought” project would provide island seniors with opportunities for regular nutritious meals with others, socializing, and discussion on subjects of interest. The project would be open to island residents of all ages at the request of Galiano seniors who prefer intergenerational gatherings. The project also would make economical meals available for purchase to take home. A 2010 island assessment indicated the need for a meals program and the local nurse has reported that there are a large number of independent elders whose nutrition is diminishing. Volunteers would experience meaningful involvement in community activities, which is a significant contributor to health and volunteer motivation. Visit Website |
| Galiano Conservancy Association | Galiano Community Food Forest – Phase 1 | 2014 | Grantee | Environment | Children, Youth, Adults, Seniors | The Galiano Community Food Forest Project addresses a pressing need for greater food security on Galiano Island, in the Capital Region and beyond. The project will create a permaculture food and medicinal forest – a locally adapted, sustainable, and high-yielding system that will contribute to and inspire resilient alternatives to conventional agriculture. Modeled on the local ecosystem, the food forest will minimize the inputs of labour, water, and nutrients required to produce nutrient dense food, while contributing to ecological health and resilience. It will operate as a social enterprise and provide an ongoing community asset. The food forest location at the Galiano Conservancy’s Learning Centre will ensure its legacy as a living model, providing an important hands-on educational resource for our community and region. Visit Website |
| Garth Homer Society | LifeStreams Learning – Pilot Phase | 2014 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | Youth, Adults, Disabled | LifeStreams Learning is a comprehensive, multi-year post-secondary learning program for young adults with developmental disabilities. It begins with a formal assessment of each individual’s specific learning needs and follows with an individual learning plan of three to five years for each student. The plans will include services already delivered at Garth Homer, combined in an integrated, learner-focused approach, including digital learning, arts learning, literacy and numeracy, and employment readiness coaching. The program will maximize each person’s opportunities for community inclusion and employment. Phase one of LifeStreams Learning saw the completion of an online learning tool and database. In phase two, the program will be piloted with the first learners to establish an online credential for participants. Four words summarize LifeStreams’ objectives: capability, confidence, choice, inclusion. Visit Website |
| Greater Victoria Citizens Counselling Centre | Adult Counselling | 2014 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Adults, Seniors | The Citizens’ Counselling Centre will provide short-term and affordable individual, couples, and group counselling to 1,200 adult residents of Greater Victoria, with all counselling offered by volunteers who are trained and supervised through the Centre. The organization will select, train, and supervise 18 to 20 volunteers in a 10-month training program (200 hours). It will also develop and conduct a 15-session Couples Counselling Training program for up to 18 graduate volunteer counsellors from Citizens’ Counselling and from Esquimalt Neighbourhood House. Timely and appropriate short-term emotional support can help prevent or mitigate family breakdown, the effects of mental disorders, suicide, and violence against others. Visit Website |
| Greater Victoria Coalition to End Homelessness Society | Extending the Reach of the Greater Victoria Street Survival Guide | 2014 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Youth, Adults, Seniors, Disabled, First Nations | This project will ensure that all vulnerable people who are homeless or living in extreme poverty have access to the waterproof, durable Greater Victoria Street Survival Guide. Through this project the Street Survival Guide will be updated, revised, and reprinted twice in 2015. This project will ensure an existing, proven resource will remain up-to-date and relevant to the lives of those experiencing homelessness. This project will touch the lives of thousands of individuals across the region, including individuals accessing services at over 80 resources in downtown Victoria, Sidney, Langford, Saanich, and elsewhere. Visit Website |
| Greater Victoria Eldercare Foundation | Embrace Aging Through Arts & Community | 2014 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | Seniors | Funding would allow long-term care residents to be a part of a community-based art program for a period of one year. The program is designed to improve the emotional, cognitive, and overall health and well-being of residents through providing art-based activities and projects with instructional support and community access. To ensure accessibility and cost-effectiveness as well as to provide opportunities for meaningful experiences that connect residents to the community, the program will be offered both at the Aberdeen Hospital and the Cedar Hill Arts Centre. A program highlight will be exhibitions of the residents’ work, to which the public will be invited. Visit Website |
| Greater Victoria Public Library | Adaptive Toy Lending Collection | 2014 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Learning | Children | Every child deserves to experience the joy of play. Children learn essential skills through play, and toys can enrich and facilitate their play. Greater Victoria Public Library’s adaptive toy lending collection will provide families with young children who have cognitive, physical, sensory, or communicative challenges with the opportunity to borrow adaptive toys at no cost. Selected toys will promote a variety of skills, including auditory, visual, tactile, gross motor, fine motor, eye-hand coordination, communication, language, and cognitive skills. The adaptive toy lending library will give parents and caregivers new ideas and props for stimulating play and will help enrich the quality of life for all children in our community. Visit Website |
| Greater Victoria Volunteer Society (Volunteer Victoria) | Youth Program Quality Initiative – Coaching for Better Youth Outcomes | 2014 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | Youth, Adults | The Youth Program Quality Initiative supports local organizations through an evidence-based quality improvement process. Staff of youth-serving organizations participate in training and observe other staff delivering programs, looking for evidence of documented best practices in youth programming. Staff then come together as a team to agree on how they apply best practice, and are coached to identify quality improvement goals for their organization. Volunteer Victoria will support the YPQI to achieve those goals and also offer a set of professional development workshops focused on the skills needed to make the improvements identified. The YPQI expects to train over 150 youth workers from up to 25 organizations, with programs impacting up to 1,200 youth per year for the next two years. Visit Website |
| Green Teams of Canada | Greater Victoria Green Team | 2014 | Grantee | Environment | Youth, Adults, Seniors | The Green Teams of Canada is an environmental volunteer organization that restores habitat in parks and connects volunteers to nature. From August 2015 to July 2016, the Greater Victoria Green Team, a newly created group, will run 60 activities in the Capital Regional District, working closely with experts who have backgrounds in ecology, conservation biology, and urban forestry. Activities will include removal of invasive plants, planting of native plants and trees, and litter removal. Among the project’s objectives are conserving, restoring, and enhancing ecosystems; providing hands-on stewardship opportunities; raising awareness of parks and local food systems; connecting volunteers to existing stewardship groups; and cultivating a community of like-minded individuals. Visit Website |
| Growing Young Farmers Society | Grower Educator Training | 2014 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Children, Youth | Funding will contribute to providing a community-based training certificate for individuals who wish to become Certified Organic Grower Educators for the Growing Young Farmers Society (GYFS) within the CRD. The modeling of the certificate will be based on the proven successes of the GYFS’s Mr. Organic. Graduates from the program will be qualified as Grower Educators to provide hands-on teaching to children of all ages and abilities. The program will be taught primarily outdoors at private or public institutions such as schools, community gardens, and recreation facilities. This program offers a proactive way to disseminate information about food insecurity and how to address it in the most sustainable and progressive ways. Visit Website |
| Habitat Acquisition Trust | Community Conservation Project | 2014 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Environment | Adults | The Community Conservation Program permanently conserves natural areas through legal agreements and brings Victoria’s conservation community together to collaborate on environment issues. With funding, Habitat Acquisition Trust will work with 3 land owners and other conservation partners to permanently protect 24 hectares (57 acres) of natural area through conservation covenants. HAT will also bring together conservation stakeholders from around the region to introduce new tools to help local governments and environmental organizations plan conservation actions in the Coastal Douglas-fir Zone. Visit Website |
| Home is Where We Live – LifeCycles Project Society | Fresh and Local: Networks Supply Exploratory Project | 2014 | Grantee | Environment | Children, Youth, Adults, Seniors | Research conducted by LifeCycles shows that the backyard orchards across the Capital Region could provide upwards of 100,000 pounds of fruit to our communities. ‘Fresh and Local’ is a multi-partner project led by LifeCycles to add this fruit into our local food system through donations to vulnerable populations and sales to existing markets and networks. Together with CRFAIR, LifeCycles will expand and streamline systems to increase harvest and redistribute local food; build a business plan and partnerships to ensure ongoing operational funding for the program; and develop aggregation and distribution models to connect gleaning programs and local farmers to the Healthy Food in Schools Network and FoodShare. Visit Website |
| InspireHealth Society | InspireHealth Bursary Program | 2014 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Adults, Seniors | InspireHealth has developed a unique evidence-based patient-centered program of integrative cancer care. The program focuses on transforming the fear and anxiety associated with a cancer diagnosis into empowering self-care and greater levels of health and personal responsibility. The InspireHealth Bursary Program supports membership for individuals with financial barriers and includes the creation of a self-management health plan, a fitness assessment, a visit with a clinical counselor, opportunities for follow-up clinical visits, and ongoing classes and information sessions to motivate and maintain healing and wellbeing. Visit Website |
| Inter-Cultural Association of Greater Victoria | Elder Knowledge: Growing Food Close to Home | 2014 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Belonging & Engagement | Adults, Seniors, Newcomers | Elders Knowledge: Growing Food Close to Home will bring together 60 diverse and multi-ethnic seniors and 40 non-seniors to increase community and personal connections through a year-long gardening project. Seniors will share cultural and traditional knowledge of food and food production through hands-on, non-language-based activities and workshops, encouraging respect and appreciation for different cultures. The cultural safe space created through this project will increase immigrant newcomer seniors’ inclusion, self-confidence, and participation in community, and the project will create multi-generational community. Visit Website |
| Intrepid Theatre Company Society | Curtain Call! An Equipment upgrade for the Intrepid Theatre Club | 2014 | Grantee | Arts & Culture | Children, Youth, Adults, Seniors | The Intrepid Theatre Club, an accessible and extremely popular 50-seat theatre and emerging artist resource centre in downtown Victoria, inherited its decades-old hand-me-down curtains and technical gear from its big sister, the Metro Studio. Home to the Uno Fest, The You Show, and workshops, rehearsals, events, and performances by community groups year-round, it is necessary to upgrade the soft goods (black curtains, white “cyc” projection surface) projection and technical equipment. This will reduce costly emergency rentals and repairs and make the theatre clean and presentable for the thousands of artists and audience members who rely on the space to share the experience of live theatre. Visit Website |
| Island Deaf & Hard of Hearing Centre Association | Youth Transition Services | 2014 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Belonging & Engagement | Youth, Disabled | Funding provided will be used to develop long term services for Deaf and hard of hearing youth ages 15 to 20 years. Once students leave the support systems of residential or local schools, continued education or training opportunities or employment can be challenging, stressful, and often overwhelming for youth and their families. Providing support early in this transition will equip youth with coping strategies and life skills, building peer and community supports and strategies for communication in the hearing world. Guidance and support will assist with education, career, and lifestyle choices. Connection with other Deaf and hard of hearing youth and adults as role models will develop inclusion, reducing the potential for isolation and give them the best chance for independence. Visit Website |
| Island Health | Improving Health and Care through Clinical Research Opportunities | 2014 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Children, Youth, Adults, Seniors | Island Health’s Clinical Trials Unit seeks to improve care by expanding the number of studies and treatment options available to patients and their families in the Victoria area. Participating in clinical research enhances care and satisfaction for patients, and improves practice by finding more effective ways to prevent, diagnose, and treat diseases. Many of the trials conducted at Island Health test new drugs or combinations, which must be stored at controlled temperatures to preserve integrity and stability. However, the existing equipment can only support trials that require drugs to be stored at room temperature; with upgraded equipment, the Clinical Trials Unit will be better able to serve the critical needs and clinical interests of the community and of researchers by offering expanded research opportunities. Visit Website |
| Island Pathways | Walking Map and Festival | 2014 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Adults, Seniors | Island Pathways will create the first walking map of all the public pathways and trails on Salt Spring Island. A Walking Festival will be held in June in celebration of the new walking map. All participants will get a newly created map of the public walks and hikes on the island. The Walking Festival and map aim to promote active transportation and inspire more people to go walking, get fit, and have fun. It will also showcase the island and celebrate Salt Spring’s green, vibrant, creative community. Visit Website |
| Island Sexual Health Society | Breaking Down Barriers-Reaching Young People at Risk | 2014 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Youth | Island Sexual Health’s Outreach Education Program provides a preventative approach towards healthy sexual decision-making. ISH works to ensure youth have the skills to practice healthy sexuality; however, youth who are not in school face additional challenges associated with high-risk behaviour. Currently, ISH provides an outreach program for at-risk youth that promotes responsible decisions about sexual health. ISH has new opportunities to provide a more comprehensive outreach program, including the development of additional skill-based curriculum and the implementation of the Compassionate Contraceptive Assistance Program (CCAP). Through the CCAP, selected contraceptives can be obtained at no cost for patients who would not otherwise be able to afford them, which allows ISH to expand its program delivery to low-income youth who are at risk for unintended pregnancies. Visit Website |
| KidCareCanada Society | KidCareCanada Learning Guide | 2014 | Grantee | Learning | Children, Adults | KidCareCanada creates trustworthy videos that teach the critical importance of early nurture for infants, their families, and the communities they live in. In Greater Victoria, the videos are widely used by educators working with low-income, teen, aboriginal, newcomer and other potentially at-risk parents and caregivers. Funding will enable KidCareCanada to develop and pilot a Learning Guide for the Born to Communicate video series to help parents engage in learning that is relevant and meaningful. This Learning Guide will be developed with partners to highlight key messages and provide guiding questions and additional resources. The project will offer a template for the development of future Learning Guides. Visit Website |
| Leadership Victoria Society | Collaboration Lab: Learning and Practice for Systems Change | 2014 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Standard of Living | Adults | A joint initiative of Leadership Victoria and the Coaches Group, the Collaboration Lab will develop leadership and collaborative skills needed for non-profit organizations to engage in collaborative work addressing population-level issues. Much of this work within the Capital Regional District (CRD) focuses on standard of living. This proposal includes three components: the design, delivery and evaluation of workshops developing skills in governance, change theory, collaboration, communications, and engagement; research and development of case-studies highlighting resource factors that support and deter collaborative work; and coaching and learning labs across the non-profit sector. At the end of the project, non-profit staff, leaders, and governance members in the CRD will be better able to identify issues and to design collaborative relationships and mechanisms focused on systems change. Visit Website |
| Mayne Island Conservancy Society | Nature Discovery and Stewardship Project | 2014 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Environment | Children, Youth, Adults, Seniors | The Mayne Island Conservancy Society, Gulf Islands Center for Ecological Learning, and Galiano Conservancy Association have invested countless hours in developing and delivering environmental education over the past 15 years. The cumulative wealth of knowledge that has resulted can be found in the heads of staff and volunteers, trapped on hard drives, and buried within filing cabinets. Partners will collaboratively collect and refine this knowledge and make it accessible to current and future environmental educators. Outcomes will include an activities manual (ring-bound living document) and an interactive website where partners can upload field-tested lesson plans and continuously share education resources. Regional partner use will be encouraged and enabled through a colloquium and workshop. Visit Website |
| Mustard Seed Street Church | Food Share Network – Action Plan Implementation | 2014 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Children, Youth, Adults, Seniors | This project proposes to implement the action plan of the Greater Victoria Food Share Network (FSN), a developing network made up of diverse non-profits committed to the “provision of healthy and nutritious food access, with dignity and respect, while supporting communities to self-sufficiency.” The Mustard Seed is requesting funding in 2015 to implement the sixth objective of this action plan by creating a coordinated intake system between food banks. The project will track food-insecure communities in the CRD, eliminate duplication of efforts, and coordinate needs assessments between agencies to “path” clients to specific social service programs. Visit Website |
| Octa Collective Society (artsREACH) | artsREACH Visual Arts and Dance Workshops | 2014 | Grantee | Arts & Culture | Children, Youth | artsREACH Visual Arts and Dance Workshops are offered free of charge to schools in the CRD, with a higher than average proportion of students from lower-income families participating. Students from kindergarten to grade 7 have the opportunity to work with professional artists and dancers to explore their creativity and self-expression through visual art and choreography. In the Visual Arts workshops, children engage in printmaking, collage, drawing and painting. In Dance, they are introduced to Jazz and Hip Hop techniques and movement. Working on their own and in groups, students develop self-confidence and build their communication and collaboration skills. Funding this project will contribute towards the goal of delivering 170 workshops during 2015, reaching over 3,500 children. Visit Website |
| Our Place Society | Volunteer Coordinator for Family Members | 2014 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Belonging & Engagement | Adults, Seniors, First Nations, Disabled | Our Place will be extending hours into the evenings and weekends, an increase from 55 to 92 operational hours that will create many new opportunities for volunteers. Our Place currently has over 380 weekly volunteers, 25% of whom are ‘family members’ (the term for people who access services). Hiring a Volunteer Coordinator to focus on recruiting, retaining, and supporting family member volunteers will impact the organization’s ability to transform vulnerable people’s lives. Dedicated staff support to help family members volunteering and struggling with such challenges as mental and physical health, addiction, and illiteracy will assist in better outcomes and provide skills for future employment, which is crucial to enable transitional journeys out of poverty. Visit Website |
| Pacific Peoples’ Partnership | State of the Pacific – Pacific Peoples’ Partnership 40th Anniversary Conference and Festival | 2014 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Belonging & Engagement | First Nations | Pacific Peoples’ Partnership is celebrating its 40th anniversary in 2015. Project funding will contribute to a dynamic week of events to be held in September 2015 in the Greater Victoria region. Over 600 people are expected to take part in the Pacific Networking Conference, a One Wave Festival, cultural exchanges and regional tours. Public events will include concerts, performances, presentations, panels, and more on the subject of the state of the Pacific. The program will connect diverse communities to discuss holistic concerns around Environment, human rights, cultural strength, health, globalization and socio-economics. A special edition of the publication Tok Blong Pasifik will be created from the proceedings and select events will be digitized to ensure wide distribution. Visit Website |
| Pacific Training Centre for the Blind Society | Blind People in Charge | 2014 | Grantee | Standard of Living | Adults, Disabled | Through this program, classes will be offered two times a week to blind adults in Victoria and Nanaimo. Blind facilitators serve as role models, teaching blindness-specific and employment-readiness skills such as Braille, adaptive technology, cooking, and independent travel. Using an empowering experiential style of learning in which blind people learn to problem solve and take charge of their own lives, the program features confidence-building activities and a positive blindness philosophy. Such training is a required first step before blind people can lead fully independent lives and has a proven track record of creating successful outcomes. It will connect participants with resources for career-path planning and offer job-shadowing or internship opportunities with local businesses and community groups to aid in finding employment. Visit Website |
| Pacifica Housing Advisory Association | Virtues Youth Group Program | 2014 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Getting Started | Children, Youth | The Virtues Youth Group program provides weekly sessions, based on the internationally renowned Virtues Project(TM) for up to 90 children, ages 4 to 12, living in Pacifica’s subsidized family housing complexes in Victoria, Saanich, Colwood and Langford. Fifty-two virtues are featured in this program, such as confidence, generosity, integrity, respect, responsibility, and thankfulness. Children enjoy arts and crafts, engage in physical activities, celebrate various holidays, have nutritional snacks, and go on field trips to learn more about the community beyond their complex. In addition to fun, children practice socially appropriate behaviour that builds self-esteem and develops strong and healthy family relationships and friendships. Visit Website |
| Pender Islands Fire Protection Society | Training Facilities Improvements | 2014 | Grantee | Safety | Adults | The ability to safely deliver emergency response services requires effective training and consistent practice. This is especially true for volunteers, who learn and maintain these skills in addition to their regular careers. To assist these men and women, the requested funds will be used to purchase a live-fire training unit for volunteer firefighters from Pender, Salt Spring, North and South Galiano, Mayne, Saturna, and Piers Islands. An easily accessible facility on Pender Island will greatly increase the frequency and effectiveness of training for the more than 150 volunteers who serve their communities. These communities include more than 17,500 residents and over $6 billion of property value. Visit Website |
| Peninsula Streams Society | Environmental Education Project | 2014 | Grantee | Environment | Children, Youth | Peninsula Streams Society (PSS) will continue to deliver its environmental education programs for grades 3 and 6 students and develop a new high school program. PSS has delivered its grades 3 and 6 programs annually since 2006 and 2009, respectively, to all School District 63 schools (and some in School District 61). In 2015, the Society hopes to expand these two programs into SD61 and will work with teachers and community members to develop and deliver a pilot grade 9 program. In this way, educational content will be delivered to students three times over their school career. Currently, every year over 1,000 students learn about increasingly complex concepts of environmental stewardship such as water conservation, pollution prevention, volunteerism, and hands-on ecological and stream/riparian restoration. Visit Website |
| Power of Hope Society | Same!: Increasing Safety around Gender and Sexuality | 2014 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | Youth | SAME! was established by Power of Hope in 2008 to address homophobia and increase safety and belonging among middle and high school students in the Greater Victoria region. In 2015, the program will provide presentations to schools, reach out to Gay Straight Alliances (GSAs) and leadership students, and build on an amazing program. The SAME! presentation for grade 8 students uses fun activities and age-appropriate subject matter to raise awareness and challenge homophobia as well as other forms of exclusion and bullying. The six-week series of workshops developed for high school GSA and leadership students provides a more in-depth exploration into root causes of homophobic and transphobic discrimination, and supports youth to create and implement an action project that promotes belonging. Visit Website |
| Saanich Neighbourhood Place | 1000X5 Children’s Book Recycling Project Victoria | 2014 | Grantee | Learning | Children | The 1000X5 Children’s Book Recycling Victoria project supports the crucial early literacy stage with the goal of every child having a home library and 1,000 books read to them by age five, building language, literacy and social-emotional skills that last a lifetime. In 2015, families at 30 Greater Victoria schools will donate books. Retired educators will sort, clean, label and create beautiful gift bags. Twenty community agencies will provide necessary drop in and outreach programs and distribute the book gifts in about 60 different programs to 1000 babies and preschoolers. Literacy changes lives emotionally, economically, and health-wise – daily home reading to babies and preschoolers is the single most significant variable. Visit Website |
| Salt Spring Island Society for Community Education | Strengthening volunteerism to build organizational capacity | 2014 | Grantee | Belonging & Engagement | Adults, Seniors | Salt Spring’s Volunteer & Community Resources Society will educate the community about the critical work of the not-for-profit sector and make the public more aware of the opportunities for volunteer engagement and the need for greater financial support in key issue areas. Salt Spring Island not-for-profits will be provided informational resources and helped to identify gaps in their organizational capacities as well as offered the dedicated expertise of volunteer mentors to address them.The Island’s 250+ not-for-profits will be encouraged to work cooperatively to reduce redundancy and deliver cost-effective services. As a result, the community will gain a revitalized and more professional charitable sector, more effective employment of limited community human and financial resources, and an improved quality of life. Visit Website |
| School District #63 – Saanich | ORCCA Dental Clinic Administrator | 2014 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Children, Youth | This project will help address the dental needs of children and adolescents under 19 years of age who come from families with an income level below $40,000 a year and no dental insurance. It is built on a model that emphasizes education, prevention, and treatment. To achieve this mission, O.R.C.C.A. has built a dental clinic, located in the annex of Sidney Elementary School, that will serve 500 clients. This grant will provide start-up funds for the salary of a clinic administrator who will run the office and provide consistency for patients, volunteers including dentists and hygienists, agencies, and the general public. Visit Website |
| Sidney & North Saanich Memorial Park Society | Youth Educational Theatre | 2014 | Grantee | Arts & Culture | Youth | Youth Educational Theatre at the Mary Winspear Centre is the creation of a performing arts production that addresses societal issues. The performances are created and performed by youth, and the storyline addresses racism and diversity, current issues that are relevant to youth. The project’s outcomes will be an enhanced capacity of young performers to address societal issues and an opportunity for young audience members to obtain skills for inclusiveness. Visit Website |
| Sierra Club of BC Foundation | Youth Environmental Leadership Program | 2014 | Grantee | Environment | Youth | Sierra Club BC’s Youth Environmental Leadership Program (YELP) is an experiential project that will engage over 250 youth in the Capital Regional District. Youth training in conservation, environmental stewardship, and restoration will support sustainable food systems, healthy land and water, and a vibrant community of youth leaders. YELP’s four components are habitat restoration; hands-on workshops and training; public education, outreach, and events; and mentoring and networking between participating schools and organizations in collaborative sustainability initiatives. Through increased skills, cohort comradery, and environmentally positive attitudes, YELP cultivates rich relationships with nature, which contributes to greater well-being, citizen engagement, and motivation for action. Visit Website |
| Society of St. Vincent de Paul of Vancouver Island | BLESS: Building Lasting Employment Success Strategies | 2014 | Grantee | Economy | Adults, Disabled | Funding will contribute to the operation of an employment program to secure part-time employment for Society of Saint Vincent de Paul clients dealing with physical and mental disabilities. The program aims to assist clients in overcoming obstacles to suitable employment, providing them with greater financial stability and independence, increasing their self-esteem and promoting their social connection and integration into the local community. The project would involve an application and screening process and 12 individuals would be enrolled in each program, which would be offered 4 times during 2015, each meeting 3 times a week for 4 weeks. Visit Website |
| Songhees Academic Youth Leadership | Songhees Academic Youth Leadership | 2014 | Grantee | Learning | Youth, First Nations | The Songhees Academic Youth Leadership (SAYL) group promotes leadership for Songhees Nation youth aged 14 to 24. SAYL members volunteer 20 hours a year on projects that have included traditional food harvesting, community gardening, leadership training, and youth summer education camps. Funding requested for 2015 will support the Digital Stories Project, led by youth for youth, to support community development and educate the wider community about the Songhees’ rich history and culture. Three digital story projects are planned: Elders Voices, Signs of Lekwungen, and Lekwammen Harvesters and Traditional Foods. Funding will also support a youth leadership retreat to enhance youth leadership skills, and a Songhees Youth Conference to be held in August 2015. Visit Website |
| Sooke Fine Arts Society | LED Gallery Light Conversion | 2014 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Arts & Culture | Adults, Seniors | This project will convert halogen gallery lighting at the Sooke Fine Arts Show to LED, the first phase in expanding and upgrading the gallery infrastructure. Existing lighting is at maximum load for the facility’s electric circuits leaving the Society unable to increase lighting in areas that need it or to expand the gallery. LED conversion will lead to reduced electrical consumption, reduced ambient heat for greater comfort for volunteers and guests, and reduced damage to artwork from exposure to sustained high temperatures. This will allow the gallery to expand to include about 50 more artworks, increase the number of artists in the show by 15 percent, increase public exposure to art, and accept newer art forms requiring electricity. Existing lighting will be donated to organizations in need. Visit Website |
| South Galiano Volunteer Fire Department Society | Live Fire Training and Water Supply Equipment South Galiano Fire | 2014 | Grantee | Safety | Adults | The South Galiano volunteer firefighters are being called on to serve a growing population with heavy tourist traffic. The department responds to a large range of emergencies including structural fires, forest fires, vehicle accidents, search and rescue, and medical calls. Funding will provide the training and core safety equipment needed to help the firefighters work safely and effectively. The Live Fire Training and Water Supply assessment for 15 volunteer firefighters will enable the society to preserve and protect life and property on the Island. Visit Website |
| Story Theatre Productions Society | Lighting Equipment | 2014 | Grantee | Arts & Culture | Children, Youth | Story Theatre offers professional, pertinent, literacy and curriculum-based performances for young audiences. While performances are “low tech”, funding is requested to purchase lighting equipment to enhance the theatrical experience when the organization performs for elementary school children in school gymnasiums. The technical elements of the lighting will appeal to students who may be more interested in how things work, than in the words they hear. The post-show classroom experience will also be expanded through conversations about how mood is affected by technology. Visit Website |
| SWOVA Community Development & Research Society | Youth Preventing Family Violence | 2014 | Grantee | Safety | Children, Youth, Adults | Family and domestic violence takes a heavy toll on our communities. Under the Youth Preventing Family Violence initiative, SWOVA will bring together the talents, resources, and skills of motivated young people to address and prevent family violence on Salt Spring Island and the Southern Gulf Islands. A network of youth leaders will receive training to help recognize signs of abuse; work with an advisory committee to create a more coordinated risk assessment and safety planning strategy; support best practices to keep women and children safe; and host workshops for peers to address family violence. With partner organizations, youth leaders also will host a week-long awareness campaign. The initiative will raise awareness, change attitudes, enhance gender equality, and mobilize community efforts, all with the aim of preventing family violence. Visit Website |
| The Other Guys Theatre Company Society | For Pete’s Sake | 2014 | Grantee | Arts & Culture | Adults, Seniors | It could be argued that no artist maintained the belief in the power of song toward social awareness more than Pete Seeger. The Other Guys Theatre’s new work, For Pete’s Sake, is intended as a tribute to musician Pete Seeger and an opportunity for audiences to gather and experience the power of music to unite a group of strangers. This new work will premiere in Victoria in January 2015, capturing the life, times, and music of an iconic folk singer. Participation. That’s what’s going to save the human race – Pete Seeger. |
| Theatre SKAM Association | Theatre SKAM’s “Runaway” (Premiere) | 2014 | Grantee | Arts & Culture | Youth | Theatre SKAM has commissioned emerging playwright Mika Laulainen to complete a full-length draft of her new work “Runaway,” which began as a 10-minute play at SKAM’s annual festival Bike Ride. The company will continue on to develop, rehearse and premiere this new work of Canadian theatre, targeted at the underserved demographic of 13- to 19-year-olds. The creative talent involved includes a range of young professionals, from performers to designers to technical support, who will be provided a professional production opportunity with all the resources that requires. Visit Website |
| Together Against Poverty Society | Federal Benefits Legal Education and Information Project | 2014 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Standard of Living | Adults, Seniors, Disabled | Low income persons with disabilities are confronted with tremendous challenges accessing their federal benefits. The community currently lacks any systematic resource dedicated to providing holistic information and assistance. TAPS will fill this access gap with an innovative delivery model that sees carefully trained community volunteers working under a specialized federal benefits expert. This model leverages the skills and experience of a single dedicated coordinator into a high-impact program that will touch the lives of thousands of disabled local residents. Persons with disabilities can expect assistance accessing their Disability Tax Credit, Registered Disability Savings Plan, Income Tax Return, Canadian Pension Plan and more, all through a single unified project at TAPS’s convenient downtown location. Visit Website |
| Umbrella Society for Addictions and Mental Health | Enhance Measuring Success Project | 2014 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Health & Wellness | Youth, Adults, Seniors | This project builds on the Umbrella Society’s Measuring Success project to create a wonderful secure and wireless mobile client database. The database met Umbrella’s identified needs, but it can be better. ‘Revision 2’ of the database will make changes so that all comments appear in a single continuous view, and in chronological order. These ‘progress notes’ would include each encounter, each referral, and every comment, and would be automatically date and time stamped. Also envisioned is a ‘Revision 3’ of the system that would integrate the strengths of the database with the GPS capabilities of iPhones, and add a system (much like the one that taxi dispatchers use) that would display the location of each team member on a digital map. Visit Website |
| University of Victoria – Centre for Youth and Society | Youth and Family Community Innovation Project | 2014 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Youth, Adults | Youth and family serving organizations are increasingly being asked to provide evidence for programs they deliver and to consider evidence in addressing community needs in innovative ways. Small non-profit organizations are faced with a dilemma: investing in evidence gathering is often viewed as taking funds away from much needed direct services. In the end, vital research is being deferred. At the same time, university students desire “real world” research opportunities–writing a paper that answers a community research question instead of writing a paper only to get a grade. This project puts quality evidence into the hands of community programmers rapidly so that their work is informed by what is known to work for youth and families and creates community engagement opportunities for students. Visit Website |
| Vancouver Island AIDS Society | Peer Navigator Project | 2014 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Health & Wellness | Adults, Disabled | The Peer Navigator will offer clients at the Access Health Centre an immediate and integrated point of contact on arrival at the offices of AIDS Vancouver Island. As services in the Access Health Centre have grown and diversified, the need for immediate client-centred and responsive referral within and between programs and organizations has increased. The Peer Navigator will offer a consistent and fully informed point of contact for clients of AVI – welcoming, assessing immediate and longer term needs, and quickly linking individuals with appropriate programs and services. The Peer Navigator will streamline the referral process and increase the impact of current services by reducing wait times for clients. Visit Website |
| Vancouver Island Kids Klub Centre Society | Brown Bag Lunch Program | 2014 | Grantee | Standard of Living | Children, Youth | Since 1990, Kids Klub has offered a healthy, nutritious “Brown Bag” lunch to children in need at local elementary and middle schools in the Victoria, Saanich and Sooke School Districts. This program is offered at no cost to the school or families. During the 2013/14 school calendar year, Kids Klub provided 117 lunches per day (2,574 lunches per month) to children who would otherwise go be hungry at school. Funding would support this program for 2015. Visit Website |
| Victoria Association for Community Living (Community Living Victoria) | VOCYL Unity in Diversity Middle School and High School Project | 2014 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Belonging & Engagement | Youth | VOCYL has recently completed a very successful three-year Middle School Project and is looking to expand its impact to more students in Victoria. VOCYL wants to continue inclusion awareness presentations to over 300 grade six students in two local middle schools, and additionally collaborate with the Best Buddies programs in two local high schools. Best Buddies, an inclusive high school program that develops relationships between youth with and without disabilities, will be enhanced by VOCYL’s partnership through recruitment support, educational workshops and presentations for the youth volunteers, and special event planning. This project aims to produce meaningful friendships and social connections between youth with and without disabilities at middle and high schools, as well as reduce isolation and increase awareness of the value of diversity in school environments. Visit Website |
| Victoria Child Abuse Prevention and Counselling Centre (Mary Manning Centre) | Raising Happy Children Project | 2014 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Children, Youth, Adults | The Raising Happy Children project provides practical parent education and support services in a group setting for 20 parents of children and youth at risk for abuse and bullying. Groups focus on life skills, parenting and non-violent communication. Depending on participant needs, topics include trauma, child development, self-care, anger, responsibility, resiliency, safety skills, loss, abuse, emotional regulation, and stress management. Methodologies used include art therapy, discussion, games, role plays, and relaxation techniques. The project will reduce wait lists through a cost-effective mental health service approach offering group sessions instead of one-to-one counselling. The project aims to help break cycles of violence, support child safety, and increase family self-sufficiency by transferring skills and knowledge. Visit Website |
| Victoria Cool Aid Society | Cool Aid Community Kitchen | 2014 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Health & Wellness | Adults, Seniors | The Victoria Cool Aid Society’s Community Kitchen program helps people overcome homelessness by providing those starting a new life in safe, supportive housing with the skills they need to succeed in a crucial part of their new homes: the kitchen. More than giving a fish, Community Kitchen’s free weekly group sessions teach people to make delicious, budget-saving dishes from seafood or anything they might find in a food bank hamper or produce aisle. Participants also learn about nutrition and purchasing. Sessions are open to all supportive housing tenants, with special sessions created to train staff at other charities how to encourage healthy living and community through food. Sessions take place at the Downtown Community Centre and in Cool Aid’s apartment buildings for seniors. Visit Website |
| Victoria Disability Resource Centre | Independent Living Skills Development | 2014 | Grantee | Standard of Living | Adults, Disabled | The Independent Living Skills project provides learning opportunities for persons with disabilities so they can access services, support, and training opportunities to live independently and participate fully in society. Service is provided on a one-to-one basis, through workshops and information sessions and follow-up meetings to monitor progress.. The curriculum will include topics such as Managing your Finances, Social Interaction Skills, Assistive Technology, Computer Skills, Food Preparation, Managing a Disability and Peer Leadership. The project coordinator will create partnerships in the community and, when appropriate, accompany individuals to initial meetings with organizations as a means of support and to expand their network, improving the standard of living for persons with disabilities. Visit Website |
| Victoria Immigrant & Refugee Centre Society | Welcome Gardens! | 2014 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Belonging & Engagement | Adults, Seniors, Newcomers, Disabled | Welcome Gardens! pairs 30 newcomers (immigrants and refugees) with 30 elders willing to share their garden space and horticultural knowledge. With the onset of age-related physical limitations, elders’ gardens often go fallow, resulting in a sense of loss, a decrease in healthy organic food, increased isolation, and reduced physical activity. Many newcomers are from gardening and farming cultures. New to Victoria and with limited access to garden plots, newcomer families lose out on food and friendships that stem from gardening. Welcome Gardens! is designed to cultivate intercultural understanding, intergenerational friendships, and a sense of feeling valued. Expected outcomes include the exchange of horticultural knowledge, expanded food literacy learning opportunities, improved food security for participants, increased intergenerational and intercultural engagement, and decreased isolation. Visit Website |
| Victoria Sexual Assault Centre Society | Trans Inclusion and Gender-based Violence Community Education Project | 2014 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Belonging & Engagement | Youth, Adults | Sexualized violence affects people of all genders; however, women and trans people are disproportionately affected. The Victoria Sexual Assault Centre believes that to bring an end to sexualized violence, we must address root causes of gender-based violence. The Project will have 3 components: community consultation and engagement, community education and resource development, and youth leadership and social action. First, community members, particularly trans individuals, will be invited to participate in developing and refining educational workshops and resources. Second, 20 interactive community-based trans inclusion workshops will be delivered to local service providers and partners. Finally, youth, through Project Respect’s youth summer camp and social action activities, will raise awareness about trans inclusion and gender-based violence prevention. Visit Website |
| Victoria Society for Children with Autism | Respite for Parents of Children with Autism | 2014 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Adults | The Victoria Society for Children with Autism offers low-cost, volunteer-run programs including monthly parent support groups and social activities for families, an equipment and book lending library, connections to community resources, support to families after diagnosis, and a monthly newsletter to support parents with children on the autism spectrum. Many of these parents have had to leave full time employment to take care of their child, and it can be exhausting and lonely. Under the Respite for Parents of Children with Autism program, each family can request up to $100 three times per year to hire a respite worker to spend a night with the child or children so that Mom and Dad can have a break. Visit Website |
| Victoria Therapeutic Riding Association | Therapeutic Riding Program | 2014 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Health & Wellness | Children, Youth, Adults | Funding will contribute to providing an alternative form of therapy on horseback to more than 150 children (including an Early Intervention program for children under 6 years of age) and adults (including seniors) with disabilities. Benefits include improved balance, speech, coordination and core strength as well as improved social connections to their peers and other members of the community, along with improved self-esteem, self-confidence and self-image. Through a partnership with the more than 125 volunteers who contribute their time to ensure that a labour intensive program such as this is viable, everyone’s lives are enriched. Visit Website |
| Victoria Women’s Transition House Society | Women’s Ongoing Support Group | 2014 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Belonging & Engagement | Adults | The Women’s Ongoing Support Group is a dynamic program for women who have been isolated due to abuse. The program rebuilds lives through educational and recreational activities and by connecting participants with the broader community. The program includes a weekly support and psycho-educational drop-in group, which affords opportunities for women to share experiences and explore topics including abuse, healthy relationships, stress management, financial literacy, and communication skills. Activities integrated into the program encourage social and community involvement, with the support of community volunteers. Participants can identify activities to attend together, and participate in planning and budgeting for these events. These activities serve to reintegrate women who have been isolated back into the community and to build social skills. The Victoria Women’s Transition House Society (VWTH) has been serving the Greater Victoria community for 43 years by providing emergency shelter, support, counselling and education to women, with or without children, leaving abusive relationships so that they can live free from the effects of domestic violence and abuse and rebuild their lives. We offer counselling support for children who witness abuse; support services for women proceeding through the justice system; third stage transitional housing and counselling for older women; community education and prevention; and a robust volunteer program that provides support to our 24-hour Crisis & Information Line as well as other agency needs. We operate from six sites, including the Emergency Shelter, our Community Office, a Third Stage Housing location, and police and courthouse locations. All our services are offered free of charge, and each year we serve over 2,000 women and 150 children & youth. Visit Website |
| We Rage, We Weep Alzheimer Foundation | Personal Safety System | 2014 | Grantee | Safety | Seniors, Disabled | The Personal Safety System is a wearable digital watch device (an integrated GPS, cellular, Internet, radio frequency, and safe zone technology with an accompanying home base station) for seniors prone to wander or become lost due to cognitive impairment. With an aging population and greater numbers of people with dementia, the Personal Safety System addresses care challenges while supporting caregivers and assisting seniors through security, greater independence, ability to age in place and fight isolation. This project will provide relief for senior and adult caregivers, as well as communities taxed by a growing number of searches for missing seniors due to dementia. Visit Website |
| World Fisheries Trust | EcoLearning Hive | 2014 | Grantee | Environment | Children, Youth, Adults | Nature education contributes to the well-being of people, most specifically through the development of youth, education, and Environment. The website www.EcoLearningHive.org helps teachers and others access appropriate opportunities from the rich diversity of nature education suppliers and resources in the CRD. Over 30 organizations are currently registered, with over 40 regular programs, but the website’s potential utility has not been reached. World Fisheries Trust proposes to respond to user inputs with increased functionality and promotion, moving to a new open-source platform (“Open Outreach”) with a mapping interface and enhanced resource sharing. The project will include greater site maintenance, exposition at local events, information sessions for teachers, educational program “taster bus” excursions, and development specifically to serve the Gulf Islands. Visit Website |
| Young Parents Support Network | Prenatal to Postsecondary Collective Impact Initiative | 2014 | Grantee | Standard of Living | Children, Youth, Adults | The Prenatal to Postsecondary (P2P) Collective Impact initiative is committed to an intelligent, collaborative, evidence-based redesign of the current approach to supporting young people from before birth through the transition to adulthood. Activities will be based on the collective impact approach, and include a community-wide convening event in early 2015; steering committee coordination; multi-sectorial partnership development; alignment of activities with other local initiatives; development of a shared measurement system; developmental evaluation; and identification of a backbone organization. Through identification of population-level outcomes and multi-sectorial engagement around mutually reinforcing activities to achieve these outcomes, P2P will then be positioned to create lasting transformative change. Visit Website |
| Alzheimer Society of British Columbia | Dementia Education Initiative for the Greater Victoria Area | 2013 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Health & Wellness | Seniors | Project staff will deliver 50 dementia education sessions to over 650 participants in the Greater Victoria area throughout the year. Participants will include people diagnosed in the early stages of Alzheimer’s disease or another dementia, family caregivers, friends of people with dementia and other adults interested in maintaining a healthy brain. Dementia education helps families maintain their quality of life, build an understanding of what lies ahead, develop skills and confidence to navigate and cope with the challenges of the difficult journey, and to connect with community resources and others in similar situations. Visit Website |
| Arbutus Singers Music Education Society | Gaining Efficiencies Through New Partnerships | 2013 | Grantee | Arts & Culture | Children, Youth | The Arbutus Singers Music Education Society and the Viva Youth Choirs are partnering to find new ways to meet their mutual program objectives in this feasibility project. Each organization has unique history and characteristics but they will seek ways to merge their endeavours to provide choral singing opportunities for 300 children and youth. The project will provide a base for developing partnerships to help reduce costs, share governance and administration of programs, and diversify approaches to developing revenues. A joint concert involving both organizations will be piloted as well. Visit Website |
| Artemis Place Society | Artemis Childcare for Young Mothers | 2013 | Grantee | Getting Started | Children, Youth | Artemis Childcare Centre has been successfully providing care to hundreds of infants and toddlers of teenage mothers since 1989. The Centre provides a holistic, compassionate and nurturing community where girls can enjoy success, develop resiliency, and get help with social and emotional issues while continuing with their schooling. The child care centre gives a nurturing start to the children of teen moms, models care-giving skills and supports each mom in her parenting. Research shows that quality early childcare is inextricably linked to the resilience in the children of teen mothers, and foundational to future cognitive and emotional health. Visit Website |
| Ballet Victoria Society | Tea for Tutu Expansion | 2013 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Arts & Culture | Seniors, Youth | Ballet Victoria is seeking funding to build capacity for its Tea For Tutu program and further increase cultural exposure for up to 700 beneficiaries. The project will provide seniors and youth (who have mobility and financial access issues) with access to four community performances. The events also include social time, and mingling with artists and technicians. The funding would help support a volunteer coordinator/ production assistant to plan the events, conduct outreach to agencies and seniors residences, and forge partnerships to make the program sustainable. Visit Website |
| BC Families in Transition Society | Dispute Resolution and Parenting Coordination | 2013 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Adults | This project will promote parents’ use of dispute resolution to resolve family conflict, in accordance with the processes outlined in the new Family Law Act. Through a combined mediation and parenting coordination model, integrated with existing services, this project will achieve the Act’s purpose in reducing parents’ use of the courts. BC Families in Transition will add family mediation services that complement those of the Family Justice Centre, individualized parenting coordination services, and communication workshops to low-income families. Visit Website |
| Belfry Theatre Society | Home is a Beautiful Word | 2013 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Arts & Culture | Adults | Playwright and journalist Joel Bernbaum will create a piece of verbatim theatre on the issue of homelessness in Victoria. Verbatim theatre refers to the process of constructing a play using dialogue drawn from interviews conducted with members of a community. This new work, titled “Home is a Beautiful Word”, has been in development for the past two years. It will be produced for a two-week run on the Belfry Mainstage in January 2014. This unique production will include voices not usually heard – in the theatre, or elsewhere – and will bring many sides of the homelessness discussion to the stage. Visit Website |
| British Columbia Lions Society for Children with Disabilities | Easter Seals Camp Shawnigan | 2013 | Grantee | Sport & Recreation | Children, Youth | This support would assist youth to attend a one week sleep-over summer camp session, for children six to 18 years who have a cognitive and/or physical disability. All activities are designed to build confidence, independence and peer-to-peer interaction in a recreational environment. Campers will participate in activities including: scaling a climbing wall, water sports, canoeing, wheelchair sports and leadership training. The six weeks of Easter Seals Camp Shawnigan provide unique opportunities for up to 300 children with disabilities to share ideas and learn team-building skills, and for alumni to return as community leaders. Visit Website |
| Broadmead Care Society | Live It Up: Making Nigel and Harriet House More Like Home | 2013 | Grantee and Hosted Organization | Housing | Disabled, Adults | This project would enable adults with disabilities using manual wheelchairs to get out into their immediate neighbourhood and into the community. Many residents who use manual wheelchairs must use wheelchair-equipped buses to travel even just a few blocks. Funds will be used to expand the outreach and inclusive programming to add more staff and volunteers, subsidize field trip fees and offer time on an attendant-controlled power wheelchair so residents can go for walks in their neighbourhood and attend otherwise inaccessible community events. Visit Website |
| Camosun College – Financial Aid & Awards | Creating Bridges to Community | 2013 | Grantee | Learning | Children | There is one-third the number of child care seats available for the number of children under five years of age in the Capital Regional District. Many child care workers leave the profession early in their careers. Camosun Early Learning and Care faculty will facilitate workshops with former students who were hired in 15 local community early childhood centres. Through these workshops, the graduates will update their knowledge and skills, and recognize the value of their work, contributing to the improvement of their programs and staff retention. This will lead to increased capacity of the early childhood education system to enable more child care spaces to be maintained in our region. Visit Website |
| Canadian Mental Health Association Victoria Branch | Youth Mental Health Skills Program | 2013 | Grantee | Health & Wellness | Youth, Adults | The local team at Canadian Mental Health Association Victoria will provide skills to manage and support distress, anxiety, or anger and reduce bullying through education and facilitator training in three programs: Living Life to the Full for young persons; a coping skills progr |