BOW VALLEY – The Banff Canmore Community Foundation has announced another 15 grants worth $145,500 to support COVID-related issues, bringing the total amount distributed by the organization through the pandemic to $490,000.
In a press release, executive director Laurie Edward said the newly announced funding builds upon the work already undertaken by the Banff Canmore Community Foundation (BCCF) to provide help when and where it is needed.
“Alongside our partners and since the beginning of the pandemic, the foundation has been providing support directly to organizations that are doing the immediate and evolving frontline work of taking care of the community’s mental, physical, and emotional health,” Edward said.
The BCCF has worked with the Canmore Rotary Club Charitable Foundation and the Wim and Nancy Pauw Foundation to identify areas that need support and move quickly to do so. It has also accessed funding for local initiatives through the federal government's Emergency Community Support Fund.
“As a result, community organizers have been able to work across the Bow Valley to efficiently and effectively support vulnerable people in each community on a full range of issues from isolation housing, to food security, to mental health programming and early childhood education support,” said Pauw Foundation executive director Cathy Geisler in a press release. “Simply put, we can make a positive impact on more residents when we work together.”
This round of funding includes funding to support food security in the community through the Bow Valley Food Alliance, as well as funding for the YWCA Banff, the Banff Public Library, the Rundle Playschool, local daycares, Santas Anonymous, and the Society of Parents for Francophone Education of Canmore.
The next round of community grants will focus on climate action, improving Indigenous relations, economic resilience, community wellness and COVID-19 recovery. Deadline for applications is Jan. 29, 2021.
“We recognize the pandemic will present unprecedented challenges to families, workers and frontline responders for months to come. So BCCF encourages those who are able to continue to donate generously to help Bow Valley communities to respond,” Edward said.
