The Libro Prosperity Fund supports community organizations that are making big things happen in southwestern Ontario. Last year by working together 78 entrepreneurs started new businesses, social enterprises started to grow, financial literacy was shared, 16 individuals transitioned off social assistance and local youth gained leadership and employability skills.
Join us in celebrating the 2019 Prosperity Fund recipients; we can’t wait to see the impact they will have!
Full list of 2019 Prosperity Fund grant recipients:
Essex Kent
| Organization Name | Project Name | Grant Amount | About the Project |
| LaSalle Hangout for Youth | LaSalle Young Leaders Program | $45,000 | LaSalle Hangout for Youth receives $45,000 for the LaSalle Young Leaders Program, targeting at-risk youth ages 15-18 to develop leadership and employment skills, job training, and a community support network through organized volunteering. |
| LEARNING DISABILITIES ASSOCIATION OF WINDSOR-ESSEX COUNTY | Supported Employment Training Program (SET) | $10,000 | The Supported Employment Training Program (SET) assists youth with a diagnosed learning disability, and is awarded $10,000 to assist participants to develop the skills needed to find and maintain employment, including social skills, preparing for interviews and communication skills. |
| Essex Centre Business Improvement Area | Win This Space Essex | $15,000 | The Essex Centre BIA is awarded $15,000 for their economic development project, Win This Space Essex, which will see area entrepreneurs complete business preparation sessions with the goal of awarding one finalist with free commercial space in the town of Essex. |
Haldimand-Norfolk
| Organizational Name | Project Name | Grant Amount | About the Project |
| The Gathering Food Centre | Riversyde 83: community food centre | $20,000 | The Gathering Food Centre’s grant of $20,000 will support a community food centre for food skills training, culinary arts and a catering social enterprise for youth and those with employment barriers, as well as provide community dinners and emergency meals. |
| ARY | Arcady (Libro) Side by Side Program | $20,000 | The Arcady Side-by-Side Program receives $20,000 to provide youth ages 7-18 the opportunity for training, mentorship and musical performance experience in a highly skilled environment, including resume building performances and recordings of their work. |
Huron Perth
| Organization Name | Project Name | Grant Amount | About the Project |
| Municipality of Central Huron | Win This Space Central Huron | $10,000 | Win This Space Central Huron receives $10,000 to provide business training and mentoring to local entrepreneurs interested in opening a location in Central Huron, with four contestants receiving free rent for one year and the grand prize winner receiving the storefront of their choice rent-free plus in-kind professional services. |
| HURON COUNTY 4-H LEADERS' ASSOCIATION | Youth 4H Judging, Go For the Gold and Demonstration Awards Day. | $5,000 | With their $5,000 grant, the Huron County 4-H Leaders’ Association will mentor youth, encouraging leadership, presentation development and public speaking skills. |
| BIG BROTHERS BIG SISTERS OF SOUTH HURON | Big Bunch | $10,000 | The Big Bunch program through Big Brothers Big Sisters of South Huron receives $10,000 to provide mentorship and social opportunities for youth in a group setting more appropriate for their needs than traditional one-on-one mentorship, fostering social growth and connections between peers. |
| CAMP MENESETUNG | The Libro Leadership Training Program - working title of course | $10,000 | The Camp Menesetung Leadership Training Program is awarded $10,000 to provide youth 15 and 16 years old with the opportunity to receive leadership training from highly skilled and certified mentors, along with practical leadership experience, skill development and employment-based training such as interview skills and resume writing. |
| LAKE HURON CENTRE FOR COASTAL CONSERVATION | Coastal Conservation Youth Corps (CCYC) | $5,000 | The Lake Huron Centre for Coastal Conservation is awarded $5,000 for Coastal Conservation Youth Corps, providing 80 youth the opportunity to learn about coastal conservation, develop professional skills and experience hands-on coastal environmental stewardship. |
| Listowel Business Improvement Area | Win This Space | $7,700 | The Listowel BIA’s economic development initiative, Win This Space, receives $7,700 to support area entrepreneurs in turning their ideas and concepts into sustainable business plans, attracting new business ideas and reducing commercial vacancies in the business district. |
| St. Marys Farmers' Market Association | St. Marys Farmers Market Pilot Winter Farmers' Market | $7,300 |
St. Mary’s Farmers’ Market Association is granted $7,300 to pilot an indoor Winter Farmers’ Market, a monthly, producer-based market focused on local producers and farm artisans to complement the summer market and provide year-long access to fresh, local food. |
| Technical Training Group (Stratford & Area) | TTG Virtual Welder | $5,000 |
The Technical Training Group receives $5,000 for a virtual welder, to provide hands-on demonstrations of this in-demand skilled trade at community events, schools and fairs to educate youth on skilled trade opportunities in the region. |
Kitchener Waterloo
| Organization Name | Project Name | Grant Amount | About the Project |
| K-W YOUNG WOMEN'S CHRISTIAN ASSOCIATION | In Her Shoes | $20,000 | The K-W Young Women’s Christian Association is awarded $20,000 for the In Her Shoes program, providing entrepreneurship and online business development support, training and experience to marginalized women. |
| KITCHENER-WATERLOO COUNSELLING SERVICES INCORPORATED | OK2BME GSA Squad | $10,000 | OK2BME Youth Leadership Group supports LGBTQ2+ youth through a youth recreation and leadership development program, and receives $10,000 to plan an annual Gender and Sexuality Alliance Conference (GSA Conference), a one-day community-building, brave space conference for LGBTQ+ youth. |
Lambton Kent Middlesex
| Organization Name | Project Name | Grant Amount | About the Project |
| HABITAT FOR HUMANITY - SARNIA/LAMBTON | Indigenous Youth Skills Training & Development | $42,000 | Habitat for Humanity, in partnership with the Chippewa of Kettle and Stoney Point and the Chippewa of Aamjiwnaang First Nations, receives $42,000 to enhance employment skills of First Nations youth by utilizing new home construction as an opportunity for skills training and development in the construction field. |
| JUNIOR ACHIEVEMENT OF SOUTH WESTERN ONTARIO INC. | Boosting Financial Literacy in the County | $20,000 | Junior Achievement Personal Finance is a financial literacy program for high school students, encompassing money management skills such as spending wisely, budgeting, investing and good credit decisions. The $20,000 grant will provide 55 programs across southwestern Ontario. |
| Municipality of Strathroy-Caradoc | Junior Trades Program | $20,000 | The Junior Trades Program, through the Municipality of Strathroy-Caradoc, is expanding their pilot program to directly engage youth ages 9-13 to foster their interest and skills in the trades prior to choosing a secondary school career path. The Junior Trades Program receives $20,000. |
| Lambton 4-H Association | Lambton 4-H Associations | $5,000 | The Lambton 4-H Association receives $5,000 to provide the opportunity for youth leaders to speak about and demonstrate their knowledge while developing interest in next-level clubs and learning opportunities. |
| The Corporation of the Township of Warwick | Township of Warwick "Win This Space' | $5,000 | The Corporation of the Township of Warwick is awarded $5,000 for their economic development project, Warwick Township Win This Space, which will see area entrepreneurs complete business preparation sessions with the goal of awarding one finalist with subsidized commercial space in the Watford business district. |
London Elgin Oxford
| Organization Name | Project Name | Grant Amount | About the Project |
| Oxford Small Business Support Centre (operating as Community Futures Oxford) | Thrive Oxford | $48,000 | Community Futures Oxford is awarded $48,000 for their Thrive Oxford program, delivering self-employment training for women starting or growing a sustainable business in Oxford County, including education and support toward obtaining B Corporation certification. |
| Mennonite Community Services of Southern Ontario | The Harvest Bowl | $60,000 | This $60,000 grant to the Mennonite Community Services of Southwestern Ontario will see their pilot ‘gleaning’ program, The Harvest Bowl, transitioned to a social enterprise which reaps the overabundance at harvest and creates dry soup mixes for year-round consumption by food banks |
| Ontario Co-operative Association | Co-operative Business Succession Incubator | $20,278 | The Ontario Co-operative Association receives $20,278 to develop a business succession incubator, providing training support and consulting to retiring owners of small and medium enterprises to convert their businesses to employee- or community-owned co-operatives. |
| London Youth Advisory Council | Generations of Leaders: Bringing Youth Strength Forward | $33,386 | Through their Generations of Leaders: Bringing Youth Strength Forward, the London Youth Advisory Council is granted $33,386 to involve youth ages 15-25 as designers and facilitators to deliver a series of workshops to adults on effectively engaging young people in community decision-making and participation. |
| London InterCommunity Health Centre | Youth Financial Literacy Workshop | $6,336 | The London Intercommunity Health Centre’s Youth Financial Literacy Workshop receives $6,336 to support youth 18-24 struggling to resolve debt issues by arming participants with financial knowledge through a series of targeted workshops. |