Grants

Action Read Community Literacy Centre

https://www.actionread.com/

Action Read is a community literacy centre. Their goal is to connect their members with employment, cultural and community opportunities available in Guelph, ON and surrounding areas. Action Read offers adults help with reading, writing, math, GED preparation, upgrading and computers. They also offer literacy programs to parents and caregivers with children ages 0 to 6. All of their programs are free and confidential. The Foundation awarded a grant to the Digital Literacy Program to enhance technology and strengthen resources in order to help members reach employment goals, manage their lives and live independently. 

Circle Home Charity

https://www.circlehomecharity.ca/

Circle Home Charity is dedicated to supporting newcomers to Canada by providing essentials needed to help them create their first Canadian home. Their aim it to create a warm and welcoming environment for those coming from war torn homes they have had to flee. Circle Home Furniture Bank, located in Guelph, ON, is an integral part of Circle Home Charity. It offers a comprehensive approach that includes not only home furnishings but also critical community support. The Foundation awarded a grant to sponsor a refugee family. 

Royal City Mission

https://www.royalcitymission.ca/

Royal City Mission is a community of people working together to make the invisible visible in Guelph. They are a key poverty relief agency working to ensure everyone has access to basic needs as well as connection. Their Drop-In Program offers a welcoming space and their Meal Program is open to anyone in need, including those from low-income households, those living in poverty, or those experiencing homelessness. Access to washrooms and showers is a huge challenge for those experiencing homelessness. The Foundation awarded a grant to construct a new bathroom, in order to make wellness possible and reduce stigmas for those experiencing homelessness in Guelph. 

The Elliott Community 

https://www.elliottcommunity.org/

For over 120 years, The Elliott Community has been providing long-term care and retirement living options to citizens of Guelph and area. Today, the Elliott offers four levels of care and accommodation. They have a philosophy grounded in family values and strive to provide a caring and inclusive, home-like community for over 300 residents and more than 290 staff members. Their top priority is supporting the independence and dignity of their residents and their families. The Foundation awarded a grant to reopen the Community Café, “The Hub” to promote the wellbeing of seniors and provide a space for much-needed socialization and independence. 

Art Not Shame

https://artnotshame.org/

Art Not Shame is a community-engaged, multidisciplinary arts organization serving youth and adults in Guelph and across Ontario. With a focus on speaking back to systemic forces that perpetuate cycles of shame and the undermining of self-worth (including racism, white supremacy, homophobia, transphobia, ableism, classism, and other intersecting forms of oppression), it seeks to shape community by intentionally building supportive and transformative social spaces. The Foundation awarded a grant to provide a sensory room in the new Art Not Shame Community Arts Hub.

Food4Kids Guelph 

https://www.food4kidsguelph.ca/

Food4Kids Guelph provides children from food-insecure homes with weekend food. Every Friday, Food4Kids Guelph coordinates with schools to deliver nutritious weekend food bags for children. During school breaks, they mail grocery gift cards to their families to help purchase food. They currently support 400 children. The Foundation awarded a grant to expand their reach, providing children on the waitlist with the ability to join the program. 

Stepping Stone

https://steppingstonegw.com/

Through its housing-focused programs and individualized support, Stepping Stone helps those in Guelph-Wellington who are confronting homelessness, to start the journey toward securing permanent housing. The Foundation awarded a grant to enable Stepping Stone to improve its assessment capabilities, with resources such as staff training and translation services. This will help it to ensure that individuals and families can transition safely into new and appropriate shelter. 

Chalmers Community Service Centre

https://chalmerscentre.ca/

Chalmers Community Service Centre serves families and individuals in Guelph who are experiencing food insecurity. The majority of their demographic consists of newcomers to Canada, refugees, asylum seekers, and their children. Chalmers also services people who are experiencing homelessness and families living in poverty. The Foundation awarded a grant to help develop a culturally sensitive food program (including Halal meals), assist in purchasing hygiene products, and diapers, and assist with the operations of this hard-working team. 

Compass Community Services

https://compasscs.org/

Compass Community Services provides responsive and professional resources to foster the well-being of Guelph and Wellington County. Their Telephone Support program completes an average of 2500+ inbound and outbound calls per month. The calls consist of wellness checks, medication reminders, and crisis support for people expressing suicidal thoughts or experiencing unsafe situations. The Foundation awarded a grant to support part-time staffing in assisting with this Telephone Support program.

FEWD (Guelph Neighbourhood Group Coalition)

http://guelphneighbourhoods.org/

FEWD (Food Equity With Dignity) serves those who are food insecure in Guelph and Wellington County. The program rotates between different neighbourhoods within the Guelph Neighbourhood Support Coalition and offers free or pay-what-you-can meals to these communities each week by processing food that otherwise would have been sent to landfill waste. The Foundation awarded a grant to help develop this program and make it sustainable for years to come.

Bracelet of Hope

https://www.braceletofhope.ca/

Bracelet of Hope works to help Lesotho, Africa recover from HIV/AIDS and towards their vision of a stronger and healthier Lesotho. Bracelet of Hope provides access to health care in rural regions of Lesotho through its Mobile Health Unit initiative. The Mobile Health Units provide much-needed health care - including primary health care, HIV testing and treatment, maternal and child care, and more. The Foundation awarded a grant to purchase a second Mobile Health Unit that services the Mokhotlong region of Lesotho.

The Children's Foundation of Guelph and Wellington

https://www.childrensfoundation.org/

The Children's Foundation of Guelph and Wellington is an organization that empowers children and youth by connecting local families with opportunities to build hope for lifelong change and break the cycle of poverty. Their Free to Grow program supports children and youth referred to them by CAMH and The Grove Hubs by providing access to mental health counseling. The Foundation awarded a grant to this program that provided 600 therapy sessions to participants.

Elora House

https://www.elorahouse.com/

Elora House provides safe housing and support for individuals who identify as women, and who are victims of sexual exploitation and/or human trafficking. Services such as their intake program, front-line crisis support, and therapeutic programming provide victims with a safe and supported environment that allows for transformation and restoration. The Foundation awarded a grant to support these services and general operating costs.

Community of Hearts

https://communityofhearts.ca/

Community of Hearts is a not-for-profit, charitable organization in Guelph supporting youth, adults, and seniors with developmental exceptionalities to achieve the level of independence they desire. Their Social Enterprise: Boxes of Hearts program gives adults with developmental exceptionalities the opportunity to gain job training and job experience through community-based opportunities at Community of Hearts. The Foundation donated a new kitchen at the Community of Hearts location to allow more space for participants and help this program grow. 

The Nightingale Centre

https://nightingalecentre.org/

The Nightingale Centre is a non-profit organization that provides grief and bereavement support to children, adolescents, and their families in Guelph and Wellington County who have experienced, or are anticipating, the death of a family member. The Foundation awarded a grant to assist in giving this organization a strong start so it can reach and support vulnerable families.

The SEED

https://theseedguelph.ca/

The SEED is a do-it-together food movement in Guelph, Ontario that provides people from all walks of life with access to healthy food. The Foundation awarded a grant for a Food Prescription Program. The program connects doctors and healthcare practitioners with members of the community by prescribing free fresh food to those in need.