Kingston Community Foundation Grants $50,000 to Rural Programs

Nov 10, 2021

Instead of holding an in-person launch gala as they in the almost forgotten pre-COVID times, The Community Foundation for Kingston and Area (CFKA) announced their 2021 fall grant recipients on November 4 via a media release.

The recipients of the grants, which are supporting a total of 23 projects in Kingston and the surrounding region, are smiling in the own offices instead of for the cameras this year, but t

“Charities within Kingston and area continue to feel the effects of the pandemic, seeing increased needs and costs at a time when many have experienced a decline in funding, particularly those that rely on in-person fundraising events and ticket sales,” said Tina Bailey, Executive Director.

“This makes the Community Foundation for Kingston & Area’s latest grants of $256,703 in new funding to be released immediately particularly needed and timely.”

Grants awarded range from $1,000 to $25,000: all responding to the current needs and realities of charities and selected to significantly contribute to the resiliency and vibrancy of our local community.

“I am particularly happy to see that many of the projects will provide support for those in our community who experience barriers that have been amplified by the pandemic,” says Willa Henry, Grants Committee Chair for the Community Foundation.

The Foundation’s granting is unique in that it funds projects in all areas of community need. Once again in this granting round, they offered ‘emergency operational grants’ to charities whose programs have been greatly impacted by the pandemic.

The smallest grant - $1,000 to the Kingston Canadian Film Festival - will bring an exhibition of the work of Alanis Obomsawin, one of the most acclaimed Indigenous filmmakers in the world.

Funding for the projects comes from income on the Foundation’s endowment funds – funds established and grown by local residents wanting to make the community a better place for all.

The Community Foundation invites all local charities to apply to its competitive grants program twice a year. The next application deadline is February 15, 2022.

4 of the 22 grants went to organisations based in Frontenac County, totalling almost 20% of the total allocation. Grants went to Wintergreen Studios ($3396), the Elbow Lake Resource Centre and the Queen’s University Biology Station ($16,650), New Leaf Link ($15,000) and Rural Frontenac Community Services ($14,456)

Community Development

Wintergreen Studios - Outdoor Classrooms, $3,396

Wintergreen Studios plans to reimagine their outdoor spaces for the long-term, to meet the changing needs of the organization and the communities to which they serve, in part by building two 10’ x 10’ roofed gazebos. Throughout the pandemic, Wintergreen Studios did not have sufficient indoor space to safely accommodate groups. With the Outdoor Classrooms project, Wintergreen Studios would not only be able to offer most of their regular programming safely outdoors, but the renovated space will become the central location for workshop delivery.

Education & Literacy

Queen’s University Biological Station - Braiding Indigenous and Scientific Perspectives through Land-Based Learning at Elbow Lake, $16,650

Over the past year, the Elbow Lake Environmental Education Centre developed a new educational program for Grade 7-10 that brings Indigenous knowledge of nature to the forefront. These new lesson plans focus on some of the most pressing environmental issues, showcase Indigenous knowledge and science, and develop hands-on nature-based learning opportunities for teachers and students. The funds will be used to provide an honouraria for Indigenous Knowledge Keepers and Elders, hire a Teaching Assistant, and reduce transportation costs for students.

Health & Social Services

New Leaf Link - Program and Operations Manager, $15,000

The newly funded position of Program and Operations Manager will manage participant recruitment, community liaison, and daily program planning and operations for New Leaf Link (NeLL). This position is crucial to NeLL’s COVID-19 recovery plan in order to attract and recruit new participants to their program and to continue to deliver high-quality programming. The Program and Operations Manager will perform a variety of adminstrative, program planning, and operational roles and support with the year-round delivery of programming for individuals with a diverse range of physical and intellectual disabilities and learning styles.

Rural Frontenac Community Services Corporation - Building Rural Youth Resiliency, $14,456.

The Building Rural Youth Resiliency program will provide rural youth with programming in their communities to strengthen connection and engagement and increasing access to service that address mental health and substance use. The provided programs include a bi-weekly drop-in program in Parham and a monthly youth night in Cloyne. Youth will learn new skills, increase food security through the development of cooking skills, and be provided with appropriate referrals to youth servicing agencies for mental health and substance use.

For further information about CFKA, go to CFKA.ca or call 613-549-9696