2023 Annual Grant Recipients
Haldimand Norfolk
Organization: Community Support Centre Haldimand Norfolk
Project: Simply Food Teaching Series
Pillar: Local Food Accessibility
Grant Amount: $20,000
This initiative strives to enhance food literacy by offering cooking workshops and classes to food insecure individuals using affordable ingredients provided at the food bank. With guidance from a registered dietitian, participants will acquire the skills to create simple, nourishing, and delicious meals using inexpensive ingredients. Furthermore, participants will receive a starter kit containing essential items required for meal preparation. Besides cooking skills, this program also brings people together. Cooking classes create a sense of community, connecting individuals who share a common interest.
Organization: Haldimand-Norfolk REACH
Project: Child Nutrition Network Farm to School
Pillar: Local Food Accessibility
Grant Amount: $15,000
The Child Nutrition Network of Haldimand & Norfolk support local student nutrition programs and school initiatives through leadership, awareness, education, skill development, supportive environments, and policies.
Thanks to this grant, nearly 3,500 students participating in local school nutrition programs will be able to enjoy locally grown fruits and vegetables as part of their daily meals. This initiative will run throughout the school year, contributing to the overall health and growth of school-aged children and youth.
Organization: The Gathering Food Centre o/a Church Out Serving
Project: Soup with Heart
Pillar: Local Food Accessibility
Grant Amount: $5,000
In partnership with local farmers and food suppliers, Soup With Heart will gather and receive donations of fresh local produce for use in preparing healthy soup recipes. These soups will be packaged and marketed in the Riversyde 83 foods marketplace to individuals and families wishing to eat healthy local foods while supporting those in need within the community. This project will also provide meaningful employment and a sense of purpose for Norfolk County residents facing challenges such as developmental disabilities, mental health issues, and obstacles to employment like addiction recovery and homelessness. The Riversyde 83 Red Seal Chef will not only craft the soup recipes using seasonal produce but will also train the staff in culinary skills.
Huron Perth
Organization: Facile Perth
Project: Supporting Access and Utilization of Government Funding for people with a developmental disability and dual diagnosis
Pillar: Financial Resilience
Grant Amount: $10,000
Though this project, Facile Perth will provide education, support and facilitation to people and families accessing the adult developmental service system for the first time. This includes helping them connect with important financial resources such as Passport funding and Ontario Disability Support Program. Furthermore, individuals will also gain insight and guidance on other financial support options like the Registered Disability Savings Plan, the Disability Tax Credit, and the Henson Trust.
Organization: Huron County Food Bank Distribution Centre
Project: Refrigeration for Van
Pillar: Local Food Accessibility
Grant Amount: $20,000
This project aims to enhance the HCFBDC delivery van by adding refrigeration capabilities. HCFBDC is dedicated to offering nourishing foods like milk, eggs, fresh produce, meats, and pantry essentials to clients of food-aid agencies and the Mobile Food Bank program. By ensuring the safe transportation of perishable foods, this initiative boosts the quantity of available foods for households dealing with food insecurity in our communities.
Organization: Municipality of North Perth
Project: Introduction to Construction as a Career
Pillar: Employment
Grant Amount: $15,000
With a focus on the unemployed and under-employed people, this project will empower workers and job seekers with the necessary foundational skills and knowledge to help them find meaningful employment in the construction industry.
The project covers five essential courses, including reading blueprints and using tape measures, working safely at heights, getting familiar with basic construction tools, and understanding WHMIS (Workplace Hazardous Materials Information System) as well as workplace violence and harassment.
Organization: United Way Perth Huron
Project: CRC Affordable Housing Concept Designs
Pillar: Housing
Grant Amount: $15,000
The Community Renewal Company (CRC) is an initiative of United Way Perth-Huron (UWPH) with a vision and strategic plan to become the non-profit housing provider in the Perth-Huron region. As the region’s first entrepreneurial not-for-profit affordable housing provider, the CRC’s focus on building and operating housing for those experiencing homelessness, the precariously housed, and individuals and families with lower incomes.
This grant will be invested in creating the necessary concept site plans and concept drawings/renderings. These materials will be used in marketing packages and social media content to raise awareness about affordable housing development projects to ensure the success of community bond and capital campaigns. Funds raised in these campaigns are then invested in building affordable and attainable housing units. With more units available, homelessness numbers are reduced, and employees retained and/or attracted to our region.
London Elgin Oxford
Organization: Crouch Neighbourhood Resource Centre
Project: Crouch Neighbourhood Resource Centre Meal Meet-Up
Pillar: Local Food Accessibility
Grant Amount: $15,000
With the support of this grant, Crouch Neighbourhood Resource Centre will enhance food security and social connection for low-income Londoners by rebooting a weekly meal with a community building and referral focus. Funds will be used to provide 75 meals a week for 26 weeks.
For over a decade, Crouch has applied a community development approach to food security by offering a weekly meal program, allowing residents to build social capital by participating in a welcoming and low-barrier moment of connection to neighbours and staff.
Organization: Elgin Business Resource Centre
Project: EBRC Self-Employment Training (Learning Management System)
Pillar: Employment
Grant Amount: $15,000
Self-Employment Training (SET) programming is a learning structured workshop series designed to move individuals from that “light bulb” entrepreneurial idea through the process of researching, planning, and firming up creative business ideas, including writing a business plan.
To adapt to the current needs, the program is expanding to incorporate online features. This grant will be utilized to create a dedicated Learning Management System (LMS) tailored for the Self-Employment Training program, enabling seamless online access and participation.
Organization: Stevenson Camp
Project: Stevenson Camp Victory Garden
Pillar: Local Food Accessibility
Grant Amount: $15,000
This project is designed to give campers, staff, and volunteers a chance to learn about health, wellness, and overall quality of life by actively participating in the community garden program.
A key goal is to help food insecure children who attend the camp and provide healthy food and a safe place for them to go to when they need to decompress. Additionally, this project aims to teach campers that growing your own food doesn’t require a lot. The aim is to educate and inspire the next generation of ‘Urban Gardeners.’
Organization: United Way Oxford
Project: The Light House – Tillsonburg Transitional House
Pillar: Housing
Grant Amount: $15,000
The Tillsonburg Transition House project is geared to help beyond a temporary night of shelter – it will provide a safe and welcoming home with all the necessary wrap-around supports to help those that are ready to move to a more stable environment and work towards building a better future story. This initiative will allow United Way Oxford to provide the house as well as the funding for the vital program supports such as connecting individuals to primary care, life skills development, and mental health/addiction supports.
Lambton Kent Middlesex
Organization: Empty Bowls Strathroy-Caradoc
Project: Empty Bowls Strathroy-Caradoc
Pillar: Local Food Accessibility
Grant Amount: $5,000
Empty Bowls is a grassroots movement by artists and crafts people in cities and towns around the world to raise money for food related charities to care for and feed the hungry and homeless in their communities. The inaugural Strathroy-Caradoc Empty Bowls Fundraiser will allow restaurants and artists to promote their businesses while receiving subsidies to cover the costs of their supplies. They will be able to showcase their talents through the donation of their time at the event. The funds raised will remain in the Strathroy-Caradoc Community to support to the Canadian Mental Health Association in providing food to the homeless community.
Organization: Good Things Outreach
Project: Good Things Outreach
Pillar: Local Food Accessibility
Grant Amount: $5,000
Good Things Outreach provides lunches and groceries once a week to those who are in need. This grant will support the organization to purchase a fridge to store perishable food and will also contribute to the purchase of food to continue provide nutritious lunches and grocery hampers to over 100 people in need in the Blenheim and Ridgetown areas.
Organization: Sarnia-Lambton Rebound
Project: The Hub
Pillar: Local Food Accessibility
Grant Amount: $20,000
The Hub focuses mainly on helping young people facing challenges because of their financial and social situations. It offers a safe and caring place for youth to unwind, build friendships, access various community resources, enjoy a hot meal each day, use Wi-Fi and computers, and have individual discussions with Rebound staff when required. This grant will support The Hub in continuing to serve food and keeping the doors open to local youth.
Organization: The Inn of the Good Shepherd
Project: Mobile Market
Pillar: Local Food Accessibility
Grant Amount: $15,000
The Mobile Market is a traveling van that delivers free, fresh produce to low-income and rural neighborhoods in Sarnia-Lambton including rural areas in food deserts, and 2 First Nation Reserves. Buying fresh can be extremely expensive, and for some families it is simply out of their budget. By bringing fresh produce right to their neighborhood, it makes it easy for those in need to access it. Clients can choose the produce they like, just like in a grocery store, so it is a dignified experience which also eliminates waste when folks get items they can’t use.
Waterloo Region
Organization: Adventure4Change
Project: Genesis
Pillar: Employment
Grant Amount: $15,000
Genesis is a three-step employment project that seeks to create access to job opportunities for African, Caribbean and Black Identifying (ACBI) youth and prepare them to be work ready. Most of the youth served are refugees or newcomers living in government assisted and low-income housing. Through a model focused on creating experiences, providing opportunities, fostering peer culture, creating safe spaces, facilitating mentorship, and enabling contribution, youth will be better prepared for attaining productive and meaningful employment.
Organization: Extend-A-Family Waterloo Region
Project: Smart Saving, Smart Spending – Money Management Skills Project
Pillar: Financial Resilience
Grant Amount: $20,000
This project intends to increase financial literacy and money management skills for adults with development disabilities. This will be achieved by creating a workbook that offers clear instruction and lessons. The workbook will cover essential financial skills in an easy-to-understand manner, and accessible to the varied needs of learners. The ‘Smart Saving, Smart Spending’ program will be individually focused, adaptable to a wide variety of cognitive levels, support repetition of learning and can be delivered in various settings by both experienced and inexperienced instructors.
By empowering adults with developmental disabilities with financial literacy skills they will be better prepared to understand, manage, save, and protect their money, leading to increased financial resilience overtime.
Windsor Essex
Organization: Art Gallery of Windsor
Project: Creative Business Boot Camp
Pillar: Employment
Grant Amount: $17,500
This project’s goal is to create and conduct two cohorts of a creative business career ‘boot camp’ in 2023/24. These boot camps will support 40 emerging creative entrepreneurs. Cohort participants will be in the very early stages of launching their creative businesses. They will learn the essential skills to succeed in their creative business, such as marketing, project management, data collection and analysis to support evidence-based decision-making and other essential business skills.
Organization: Downtown Windsor Business Revitalization Association
Project: Good Greens Food Reclamation Program
Pillar: Local Food Accessibility
Grant Amount: $20,000
At the close of each market day, at the Downtown Windsor Farmers’ Market, unsold produce, baked goods, and prepared foods are often discarded and go to waste. The Good Greens Food Reclamation Program proposes to gather these goods through a team of volunteers, allowing produce, baked goods, and prepared foods to be repackaged and sold at a reduced price, or donated, ensuring that low income, at risk and vulnerable populations in the city centre have access to fresh, healthy foods, thereby maintaining a well-balanced and nutritious diet. Furthermore, by purchasing the excess produce and food, the program supports local farmers and food makers, ensuring that they receive payment for their goods.
Organization: Women’s Enterprise Skill Training Centre (WEST)
Project: Supporting Women’s Employment and Transition into the Workplace
Pillar: Employment
Grant Amount: $20,000
WEST programs provide support to meet the needs of diverse women and girls including newcomers and racialized women, women in skilled trades, and youth. WEST also works in partnership with a well-established network of local employers to support job matching, work placements, networking, and candidate referrals to help reduce local talent shortages. This grant will bridge gaps and aid participants in various employment-focused training and skills development programs. It will provide extra support that is crucial for helping women and youth facing employment barriers to enter the workforce. This support includes things like professional clothing, toolkits, safety gear, help with transportation, and chances to receive mentorship and attend job-related networking events.
Organization: WE Build a Dream
Project: #HerPower Skills Workshop
Pillar: Employment
Grant Amount: $12,000
The workshop will allow young women, and those from equity deserving groups, to learn new skills and discover different career opportunities available in the skilled trades. #HerPower Skills workshop will invite participants to join Build a Dream for a two-day workshop where they will learn from skilled tradespeople and get hands-on experience with Milwaukee tools.