Sandra Richardson, CEO of the Victoria Foundation
VICTORIA – A record amount of funding is being distributed through the Vital Stream of the Victoria Foundation’s Community Grants Program, with just over $6.194 million supporting 252 organizations in the capital region. This funding will help meet the growing need for resources, as non-profits and charities continue to experience increasing demands from community members for their services.
$1.3 million of this funding is being distributed locally from the Community Prosperity Fund, an investment from the Government of BC totaling $25 million for the province’s non-profit sector.
The 2024 Community Grants Program will provide a 26% increase in funding compared to 2023, with the growth attributed in part to the one-time allocation from the Community Prosperity Fund.
Three out of four grants will support organizations or projects that significantly benefit equity-deserving populations including Indigenous, Black, People of Colour, 2SLGBTQIA+, women, children and youth, persons with disabilities, and newcomers.
“This record-amount of funding through the Community Grants Program Vital Stream will help to strengthen philanthropic organizations to achieve their missions,” said Victoria Foundation CEO Sandra Richardson. “Generous funding from the Community Prosperity Fund will also help many organizations, who continue to work under significant pressures, to better meet the community’s needs around poverty reduction and social inclusion.”
This funding announcement comes on the heels of the latest State of the Sector report, titled ‘Under Pressure.’ The report found that many non-profits today are grappling with high costs of inflation and skyrocketing demand for services, that they often experience burnout, and that they’ve seen a decline in revenues and volunteerism, among other findings.
The Community Grants Program is one avenue that will help address these challenges by supporting registered charities and other qualified donees whose work benefits community wellbeing in the capital region. The program aims to help strengthen the charitable sector and long-term resilience of the community by providing organizations with flexible, general operating funding.
Ava Shabestari of the Victoria Immigrant and Refugee Centre Society (VIRCS), says a community grant the society is receiving this year will go a long way.
“With this funding, VIRCS pioneers a transformative initiative merging three vital programs to combat profound challenges: food insecurity, culturally sensitive mental health for racialized women, and youth leadership development for immigrants and refugees in Greater Victoria,” said Shabestari.
She says the initiative “enriches lives, highlights our community’s resilience and our shared commitment to equity and empowerment.”
Similarly, Dr. Grace Wong Sneddon of the Victoria Chinatown Museum Society (VCMS), says their community grant will be used to preserve Victoria’s Chinese heritage for future generations. The funding will help to create a strategic communication plan, which includes a brand-new website with a platform to house and share videos and stories of the community. It will also enable VCMS to hire a social media manager to help with outreach.
“The impact of this grant will be far reaching, creating more opportunities to share intergenerational lived experiences of Chinese Canadians along with information and resources for all communities to learn together,” said Dr. Wong Sneddon.
The 2024 Community Grants Program has two grant streams, including the Vital Stream and the Collaboration Stream. Starting this year, the grant streams will have separate intake timelines. Applications for the Collaboration Grant Stream will now be accepted during the Fall of 2024, with more information to be shared later this summer. Funding from the Government of BC’s Community Prosperity Fund will also be included in the grants from the Collaboration Stream.
To see a full list of organizations funded, click here.
The Victoria Foundation works closely with generous donors in our community to provide funding for the program. A majority of the $ 6.194 million distributed came from funds held and managed at the Victoria Foundation, where donors have given the Foundation the discretion to distribute annual grants. Other funding comes from the Government of BC’s Community Prosperity Fund, and from donor-advised funds and Community Action Funds where individuals can donate directly to issue areas including housing, health and wellness, food security and more.
As a broad-based and place-based funder, Victoria Foundation staff work to ensure an equitable distribution of grants across the region and sub-sectors, including arts and culture, environment, and many more. The Community Grants Program is the Victoria Foundation’s flagship granting initiative. In 2023, the foundation distributed 1,887 grants totaling over $27 million.
Source: Victoria Foundation
