Canada's Community Service Recovery Fund has come through with more than $1 million in funding for 25 community projects, most of them in support of the United Way Centraide North East Ontario.
The funding announcement took place Friday morning at the Meals On Wheels venue on Bancroft Drive in Sudbury where community leaders gathered along with United Way officials and board members.
United Way executive director Mary Lou Hussak said she was pleased with the federal funding, which was provided to help several community organizations in Sudbury and other parts of Northeastern Ontario.
"It is intended to help them become more sustainable in their operations by developing programs, transitioning to new ways of program delivery, purchasing new equipment, hiring staff, or opening or renovating so that they continue to do their work, to deliver programs to support individuals and families in our community recover from the effects of pandemic," she said.
Sally Dunton, executive director of the Sudbury Community Foundation, was also pleased with the announcement.
“These funds will assist the community service organizations that deliver central programming to the residents of our community,” Dunton told the gathering.
“We're very grateful to the Government of Canada for recognizing the impact that local community services have on our community and the work that they do, and also to give community foundations, the United Way and Red Cross an opportunity to work collaboratively and ensure that we are able to reach as many people as possible. So we're very grateful for that.”
Sudbury MP Viviane Lapointe said that during the COVID-19 pandemic, it was difficult for many organizations to continue to serve their clients because in most cases, they were not regarded as essential workers. Lapointe said the reality was that most community organizations do provide vital services to people in need.
"These organizations provide essential services to their communities and they had to be struggling to survive along with the people to survive the economic and the social consequences. And while these organizations were struggling, they were all along fighting for the people that needed their services," Lapointe said.
"I'm pleased to announce that the Government of Canada is providing over $1 million in funding to assist these community organizations in the challenges they have," she said.
Following were funds announced for the Sudbury area:
- Afro Women and Youth Foundation, $86,480 - Empowered AWYF Team.
- Art Gallery of Sudbury, $62,488 - Art on the Go.
- Big Brothers Big Sisters Association, $35,000 - Hybrid Chatterjam.
- Cultural Industries Ontario North, Inc, $69,650 - Workforce Development – Northern Ontario.
- Myths and Mirrors Community Arts Inc., $25,410 - Revisiting BIPOC Mentorship.
- NISA/Northern Initiative for Social Action, $97,750 - Service Modernization Project.
- N'Swakamok Native Friendship Centre, $50,000 - Reunite, Revitalize and Rejuvenate Staff and Community.
- Sudbury Canoe Club, $46,617 - Regatta Ready.
- Sudbury Finnish Rest Home Society Inc., $29,600 - Technology Upgrades.
- The Sudbury Kinsmen Family Centre Foundation, $25,000 - Laundry Equipment Upgrade.
Funding was also provided to community projects in the Parry Sound, North Bay - Nipissing, Manitoulin Island, Timmins, Cochrane and Temiskaming areas.
The Community Services Recovery Fund is a one-time investment of $400 million to help Community Service Organizations (charities, non-profits, Indigenous governing bodies) adapt, modernize and be better equipped to improve the efficacy, accessibility and sustainability of the community services that they are providing through the pandemic recovery and beyond, said a United way news release.
Len Gillis covers health care and mining for Sudbury.com.
