Leaders-in-the-making

Positive spaces, leadership training and employment preparation are giving youth in priority neighbourhoods a leg up through the HCF-supported Growing Youth Leaders project.

The project is a partnership between the City of Hamilton’s recreation division and Riverdale and McQuesten neighbourhood residents and community development workers. The goal is to provide local youth with the necessary experience and skills to gain employment including recreational programming and leadership training and certification.

Research from the Social Planning & Research Council underscores the importance of this project:  youth is Hamilton’s fastest growing population, but many face issues associated with poverty including not completing high school and longer-term unemployment.  Job training, experience and opportunities help to address these risks.

Thirty-five hours of instruction including first-aid training, employment readiness and principles of healthy child development are designed to introduce youth to jobs in recreation and to build new skills. Participants have the opportunity to volunteer in a City of Hamilton rec centre, and all program graduates of are guaranteed an interview for paid recreation positions with the City.

 

Excerpt from Summer 2016 Legacy newsletter

Hitting the right note

An HCF grant is striking a chord in support of Sinfonia Ancaster’s inaugural concert season and orchestral programming.

Sinfonia Ancaster was born out of the music department program at Redeemer University and is now a part of the Ancaster Society of Performing Arts. The orchestra, consisting of 35 professional and emerging musicians, including students, performs a diverse and rich repertoire. It also serves as a mentoring program for young musicians who learn and develop their skills with guidance from professional musicians. Two priorities for the orchestra are to feature local talent as soloists and to present performances jointly with other community groups.

 

Excerpt from Summer 2016 Legacy newsletter

Lifting the load

A diagnosis of serious illness in the family can be devastating – and especially to children. Wellwood Resource Centre is lightening the burden for families in these situations.

With support from an HCF grant, Wellwood is expanding its Kids’ Program which offers practical assistance like door-to-door transportation to its facilities where it provides meals (which the kids help to prepare) and help with homework. Parents also benefit from this kind of support which provides relief and predictability. More than half of Kids’ Program participants live in Hamilton’s priority neighbourhoods.

Emotional and psychological well-being are crucial for young children in these scenarios. Serious illness can touch any family and this program goes a long way to ensure that children in these situations do not feel isolated or overwhelmed.

 

Excerpt from Summer 2016 Legacy newsletter

Three new loans making a big impact

Sacajawea Non-Profit Housing Inc.

A loan from HCF to Sacajawea Non-Profit Housing Inc. is enabling the organization to buy property where they will build 23 affordable rental apartment units for Aboriginal families. The project is located in an area well-served by transit, schools and services including grocery shopping, government services, parks and an Aboriginal Health Access Centre.

“The indigenous population in Hamilton is growing more quickly than the City’s overall population and the existing units run by Aboriginal providers are geared to families,” said Sacajawea Executive Director, Melanie McAulay. “While more affordable housing is needed for all family types, this building will help address an unmet housing need for singles, couples and small families.”

Sacajawea is a non-profit organization that builds and maintains housing for low- to moderate-income Aboriginal families. With this new building development project, Sacajawea will address a critical gap for one-person and small-family Aboriginal households in Hamilton.

 

Neighbour to Neighbour Food Centre

Good healthy food is something that everyone should enjoy regardless of income. A new initiative by Neighbour-to-Neighbour is geared towards ensuring that low-income families on the Hamilton Mountain have dignified access to healthy meals. The “community food centre” – the seventh of its kind in Canada – is a welcoming community space that offers a range of programs with healthy food at its core.

Last year Neighbour-to-Neighbour was chosen from among 24 Ontario towns and cities to partner with Community Food Centres of Canada to open a centre. The location at Limeridge Road West is well-placed — Neighbour-to-Neighbour cites some 35 percent of residents in some Mountain neighbourhoods live below the poverty line. A new loan from HCF will help to finance renovations to the facility before it opens as the community food centre.

Although addressing food insecurity is at the heart of this initiative, the community food centre is distinct from a food bank because it involves more than just access to food. It also offers programs for skills development and education around healthy eating. Indeed, the benefits of community food centres are wide-ranging and include improvements in both physical and mental health.

 

Trillium Housing Inc.

Housing affordability can make a world of difference for families. That’s where Trillium Housing comes in. Trillium is a non-profit organization that creates housing affordability through financing and developing entry-level homes. The Trillium team itself has significant expertise with a combined 100 years of experience in real estate, construction and housing innovation.

A recently approved loan from HCF will allow Trillium Housing to develop a new site with 66 affordable townhouses for families with annual incomes as low as $45,000, an income level below the local median. This new build site represents Trillium Housing’s second Hamilton project with financing from the Hamilton Community Investment Fund.

Of significance to eligible families is the Trillium Mortgage which combines with conventional financing to provide housing affordability, and is payment-free until resale or discharge. Moreover, the value of the mortgage is based on the individual circumstances of income-eligible buyers. This structure provides a simple yet effective way to offer housing affordability to families with eligible income levels.

Everyone Rides with Sobi Hamilton

HCF regularly supports organizations and initiatives that deal with poverty, health and the environment.  But it’s not every day that a project comes along that addresses all three at once, while also helping to unlock a lot more funding.

SoBi Hamilton, the popular bike sharing program, was launched with great success in 2015, but limited resources also limited the number of locations it could serve.  Now, a grant from HCF’s Losani Family Foundation Fund and the Environmental Endowment Fund is helping to expand SoBi’s reach into neighbourhoods where more low-income residents can access the service.

Peter Topalovic, Hamilton Bike Share & Smart Commute program manager with the City of Hamilton says HCF’s support to the pilot project, known as Everyone Rides, has also been the key to garnering a matching grant of $275,000 from the Federation of Canadian Municipalities (FCM).

“The community foundation was more than a partner in this initiative,” says Peter.  “Not only did its contribution allow SoBi to access the full match from FCM, the Foundation team was also very supportive in bringing their knowledge to maximize community benefit.  They really understood the initiative and the importance of having accessible transportation throughout the city.”

Through Everyone Rides, Hamilton will become a frontrunner in North America in bike share systems to serve low-income neighbourhoods.  The program also includes supports such as cycling safety and skills training to overcome barriers to bike use experienced in other cities.

By encouraging more people to ride bikes, SoBi creates sustainable transportation from which the only energy burned is calories.

From Summer 2016 Legacy newsletter

Donor leaves a purrfect legacy to local felines

A remarkable donation to Hamilton Community Foundation will help ensure local cats will be healthy, safe and wanted – forever.

The Foundation will give an annual grant of over $65,000 in perpetuity to the Hamilton/Burlington SPCA to fund feline health and well-being, thanks to the donation of an estate from lifelong pet lover and long-time Hamilton cab owner, George Seliga.

“Pets provide companionship and are important family members for so many people,” says Terry Cooke, Hamilton Community Foundation president & CEO. “We are thrilled to have helped Mr. Seliga create the legacy he wanted.” Cooke says that because the donor wanted to do something that would benefit animals forever, he established an endowed fund, meaning that the donation is invested, generating the income that will be granted to the HBSPCA every year.

“It’s just one wonderful example of the many donors who have entrusted the Foundation to help them support those things that have had meaning to them during their lives – even when their own lives are over.”

Founded in 1887, the Hamilton SPCA (“HBSPCA”) was established to protect vulnerable animals. Today, the HBSPCA protects animals at risk, cares for and rehomes neglected and homeless pet companions, and promotes respect for all animals. Donors support affordable spay/neuter programs for family-owned pets and pets belonging to persons-at-risk. Donors and local veterinarians together support spay/neuter for free-roaming cats.

“Every spring, our kennels and foster homes are filled with homeless and neglected cats and kittens,” says HBSPCA CEO Marion Emo.  “Mr. Seliga’s generous donation will help us to expand quality programs that support the three essential things that pet parents can do for their animal’s well-being: spay or neuter them, give them regular, preventative veterinary care, and have them micro-chipped for a safe return home if lost.”  Emo says that the grant will make services to rescue groups and low-income families more accessible. “Combined with education about responsible cat care, we are confident that abandoned cat populations will significantly decrease and every cat will be a wanted cat.

Good Shepherd program takes participants from the Market Place to the job market

Program builds real-world work experience

Michael Young always wanted to work as a security guard. Good Shepherd’s MarketPlace work experience program helped him get there.

The MarketPlace is part of Good Shepherd’s Venture Centre, a massive repurposed car dealership in downtown Hamilton that opened as the organization’s clothing and emergency food program in 2015 and served 69,000 people in its first year.

“It’s like a small Fortinos,” says Carmen Salciccioli, director of the Good Shepherd Centre. “There is selection and dignity. We’re a one-stop shop for everything.”

Everything, it turns out, including a job.

An HCF grant is supporting the work experience program, which builds skills to help participants be job-ready. They are interviewed, receive training, follow a work plan that they help create, get regular feedback and receive a reference letter on successful completion. The program is expected to assist 30 people during its first year, increasing to 80 annually by year three.

“It makes total sense to do pre-employment training here,” says Carmen. “Our MarketPlace program evaluation showed that the number one reason people access our services is insufficient income.”

Program participants stock shelves, work the cash, work in the warehouse and perform janitorial tasks—all skills they can transfer to a number of industries. Soon job experiences will expand to include landscaping, painting, pest control and more.

Michael is proof that the model works. He started at the MarketPlace last June and today is working in the job he wanted. “Volunteering at the MarketPlace was something I could add to my resume,” he says. “It showed my employer that I’m focused and dedicated to working and made me feel more confident.”

“With this program, everyone has some skin in the game,” Carmen says. “We do it together, not us on their behalf. The only thing holding us back is our imagination.”

 

Excerpt from 2016 Annual Report

Code Clubs open doors to a high-tech future for middle-school students

Canadian ICT workers are in short supply

Ten Grade 6, 7 and 8 students are spending their nutrition break learning how to make a video game—and at the same time learning they could have a bright future in technology. DSC_7600

The club at Viscount Montgomery Elementary School is one of 17 currently offered to middle school-aged students in Hamilton’s public and Catholic schools. Three years of ABACUS funding from Hamilton Community Foundation is turning the clubs from a successful but resource-strapped pilot into a stable, sustainable program run through the Industry Education Council. “Without HCF’s support we couldn’t structure the program or follow up,” says co-ordinator, Beth Gibson. “Now we have the resources to grow.”

Canada has a shortage of 182,000 information and communication technology (ICT) workers. Kevin Browne, founder of Software Hamilton and a Code Club champion, sees hundreds of local ICT jobs go to out-of-town talent because no one from Hamilton applies. “We have a pipeline problem,” he says. “If students aren’t introduced to technology in middle school they won’t take it in high school and it might as well be rocket science.”

The weekly program targets schools in Hamilton’s Neighbourhood Action Strategy but any school is welcome, particularly if it encourages girls to join (only 24 percent of ICT workers in Canada are women). Weekend clubs and summer camps are planned for the Central Library. The clubs are facilitated by post-secondary students and ICT entrepreneurs. A McMaster University study will determine the program’s impact on the post-secondary perceptions of students.

It’s only week two at the Viscount Montgomery club, but already every iPad is running a rudimentary video game that the students have programmed themselves. “It’s so exciting to see their interest growing,” says teacher Sarah Weston. “Lightbulbs are going off. They’re realizing it could be a career for them.”

“I want to see a Code Club in every school in Hamilton,” says Kevin. “Of all the things that are happening in tech in the city right now, I think this is the most important.”

 

Excerpt from 2016 Annual Report

Canadian Warplane Heritage Museum Fund

Hamilton treasure is HCF’s newest agency fund

Establishing a long-term endowment fund at Hamilton Community Foundation has given the Canadian Warplane Heritage Museum “instant credibility” with contributors says the museum’s President and CEO, David Rohrer. IMG_8656a

“We needed to develop a legacy gifts program for the museum,” he says, “and we quickly realized that we weren’t best suited internally to manage those investments. The community foundation offers the expertise we need. We are very pleased to be affiliated with HCF in this way. It was the right step.”

David points out that placing its endowment with HCF – the organization made its initial investment in 2015 – also exposes the museum to a wider range of potential supporters. The museum has a goal of contributing 10 percent of undesignated gifts to the fund, he says, and having the endowment at arm’s length protects it from the pressures of day-to-day operations.

“We are community-based and proud to be in Hamilton,” says David, “and we are very grateful for HCF’s support of the museum’s High Flight program, in addition to the endowment fund.” The High Flight initiative offers field trips and approved curriculum to Grade 6 science and Grade 10 history students. Twenty-five schools in the region participated this year. David illustrates the influence of the program: one of Canada’s current CF-18 fighter pilots reports that he got his first taste of aviation with a visit to the museum decades ago.

“The Canadian Warplane Heritage Museum is the largest flying museum in Canada,” says Terry Cooke of HCF. “It has been a Hamilton treasure for 44 years. We are thrilled that such an outstanding organization trusts us to manage its long-term endowment.”

 

Excerpt from 2016 Annual Report

Marnie & Bill Brehm Family Fund

The Brehms have confidence in HCF’s decision-making

 

Bill and Marnie Brehm

Marnie and Bill Brehm

Marnie Brehm has been involved with Hamilton Community Foundation since the 1980s, as a Board member and a contributor. She knows it well and trusts it to understand community needs. She and her husband Bill contribute regularly to the Community Fund.

“The Community Fund gives the Foundation capacity to respond to the most urgent needs in the community,” she says. Recent examples include the Foundation’s poverty work and its ABACUS education initiative.

Marnie, an accountant, and Bill, a retired planning consultant, have volunteered their time and talents at the leadership level in many organizations over the decades and they have confidence that Hamilton Community Foundation assesses community needs effectively. That is one reason they support the Community Fund – what Bill says in other organizations might be called the “general fund.” They also like the flexibility the Community Fund gives the Foundation and the speed with which it responds to changing community needs.

Marnie and Bill both support the community in a variety of ways – through HCF and other organizations – and they feel giving to the Community Fund is an important component of their philanthropy.

“While we could choose to support a particular cause or issue – and we do that in other aspects of our giving – we think the Community Fund is crucial too,” Marnie says. “The Foundation is in a position to best determine the needs of the community and this gives them the capacity to respond.”

Bill agrees: “Marnie’s Board experience and our contacts with staff give us confidence in the Community Fund decision-making process.  The Foundation works hard to identify and address key needs to be filled in the community.”

 

Excerpt from 2016 Annual Report