BC Gov News

Message from Parliamentary Secretary Megan Dykeman

Welcome to my Fall non-profit newsletter!

It has been a busy transition to fall with session taking full swing over the past several weeks.  This summer, I was fortunate to meet so many incredible non-profits and see their work in action making immediate, life-changing differences for our friends and neighbours around this province.  

We recently announced $60 million through the Stronger Community Services Fund to strengthen the capacity, functioning and growth of non-profits across B.C. Read on below for more funding opportunities available to support the work you do in our communities.

To show appreciation for the non-profit sector, we proclaimed October 30 Non-Profit Recognition Day. We see your work. We’re grateful for the difference you’re making. And we want everyone to know and celebrate the non-profits that are vital to people and communities in B.C.

Megan Dykeman
Parliamentary Secretary for Community Development and Non-Profits

Current funding programs

Vancouver Foundation Lighthouse Organizations Fund

• $22.9 million multi-year, flexible funding for large, multi-service organizations supporting poverty reduction and social inclusion across the province. Applications open December 1, 2023 and close on January 5, 2024.

Vancouver Foundation Community Prosperity Fund,

• $25 million multi-year funding in partnership with Community Foundations Canada for organizations working toward poverty reduction and social inclusion across the province. Applications open Winter 2024.

To stay informed of upcoming funding, sign up for the Vancouver Foundation Newsletter here.

Civil Forfeiture Grant

• for community safety projects, community-based non-profits and indigenous organizations
• applications close November 22, 2023.

Community Gaming Grants

• for non-profits addressing equality issues and the unmet needs of under-served groups
• applications close November 30, 2023.

B.C. Employer Training Grant

• supporting skills training for workforces
• grant covers 80% of employee training cost.

Non-profits news

With global inflation rising, additional pressures have been placed on the food security infrastructure in B.C. We took action this summer through $14 million funding to United Way Critical Infrastructure fund to help non-profit organizations build their capacity to address food insecurity in their communities during this time of high cost and $15 million in funding for Food Banks BC to help provide healthy, nutritious food to communities in B.C.

Vantage Point surveyed 757 organizations for their State of the Sector 2023 report and found that B.C. non-profits continue to be a safety net for communities but are facing pressure. The report also identified key recommendations for funders, policy makers and leaders to help ensure these organizations thrive.

Connections

BabyGoRound has been doing incredible work since 2012 and has helped 9,500 families in the Lower Mainland access baby gear. I was thrilled to visit them in September and learn how $150,000 in provincial funding will help them provide over 1,000 low-income families with cribs, bassinets, strollers, and infant car seats.

My thanks to AFP, the Menstrual Equity Symposium and Volunteer BC for including me in their roundtables, panels and conferences earlier this fall. If your organization is interested in connecting with me for future events, please reach out to me directly.

Profiles

Ada Mawson is now a successful business owner, and yet she had not always recognized the leader that she could be. Encouraged by her friends, she joined the 13 Moons leadership workshop for Indigenous women offered by IndigenEYEZ. “All my life people said, Ada, you’re a leader. The workshop helped me to recognize the leadership skill within myself. We as women have so much to give and so much leadership within us, and sometimes we need others to show us that. 13 Moons helped me do that.” IndigenEYEZ received multi-year operational funding through a $100,000 Vancouver Foundation LEVEL BIPOC Grant

For over 40 years Langley Meals on Wheels has been helping people retain independence in the comfort of their own homes by serving fresh, wholesome meals, delivered right to their doors. Their caring volunteers show up as friends and connect with those living alone and help people feel safe. When I visited this summer, I heard what a difference it makes for people living alone knowing that a volunteer will check on their well-being on delivery days. A provincial grant of $350,000 is helping provide more than 5,000 meals per month to Langley households. I’d like to thank this wonderful organization and their volunteers for the amazing work they do in our community.

B.C. Unclaimed Property Society is an independent, non-profit society that helps reunite people with unclaimed money that gets left behind in courts, insurance payments, credit union and other types of accounts – actively searching for rightful owners. They also maintain a free, public searchable list of unclaimed property in B.C. that you can search to see if they are holding any money in your name. The Society donates a portion of excess unclaimed funds to the Vancouver Foundation for charitable purposes. Over $190 million remains unclaimed and in 2022 Unclaimed B.C. donated $4.17 million to the Vancouver Foundation to support grants to charities and non-profits across BC.   

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