Buying property, they say, is all about location—especially when it comes to the purchase of two critical pieces of land in the Dundas Valley, made possible by Hamilton Community Foundation.
The properties sit in the Cootes to Escarpment EcoPark System, an ongoing initiative to protect, connect and restore more than 9,600 acres of some of Canada’s most biologically diverse land. The two properties, both located in the Pleasant View area, now create a protected wildlife corridor stretching from marsh to Mountain.
“These two properties were the key to everything,” says Jen Baker, land securement coordinator for the EcoPark System. “We wanted them for years. Now there’s a permanent dark green link between Cootes and the escarpment.”
Both properties are nesting sites for endangered birds and home to wild plants. “They are significant both in terms of the role they play in the landscape and the habitat they provide,” Jen says.
The EcoPark System’s partner organizations had enough funds to buy one property and had been told the second would have a year-long closing, giving them time to raise the extra money. Suddenly the game changed: they would have to purchase both properties at once. That’s where HCF came in.
The Foundation stepped up with support on a number of fronts. A grant from the Frank Charles Miller Fund helped buy the first property, and the Heather and Ross Hamlin Fund not only provided a grant to help with the land purchase but is also offering another $150,000 to match funds raised from individuals in the community. The Foundation also provided a loan through its Hamilton Community Investment Fund.
“The whole deal would have fallen through without HCF,” Jen says. “We might have been able to go back to the table at some point, but it would have put the whole project in jeopardy for an indefinite period of time.”
“This project is not only exciting because of the land it protects,” says Annette Aquin, HCF’s Executive Vice-President of Finance and Operations. “It also uses HCF’s full complement of resources to drive positive change. When the loan is repaid the money will be directed to other important projects and the interest will be used for future granting. It’s really a win-win for Hamilton.”
Excerpt from 2016 Annual Report
The beads represent objects that relate to a student’s potential through education. Each abacus bead was sculpted on a computer and then 3D printed. Steve Mazza, Artist
Terry and Brenda Yates see the community foundation’s current emphasis on education as a “natural evolutionary step” from its focus on eliminating poverty and they’ve made a significant commitment to help launch ABACUS, HCF’s community-wide initiative.
“As a former teacher,” says Brenda, “I believe that education is one of the best ways to bring people out of poverty. If you can help keep children on an educational path, they will find their way – despite difficult challenges in their backgrounds.”
Terry points to the mentoring component of the ABACUS program as one of the critical factors. “If children see someone older succeeding because of education – an older brother or an uncle or someone else they know – it makes a huge difference. That’s what we’re trying to do.”
The Yates have been actively involved with Hamilton Community Foundation since the 1990s and they appreciate its role in the community. “It’s an incubator,” says Brenda, describing the Foundation’s process of researching issues, bringing stakeholders together, and crafting shared solutions that maximize every partner’s unique contribution. They were early champions of the ABACUS idea and look forward to seeing it adopted in different ways across the community. Their new fund at HCF – the Terry and Brenda Yates Fund – is targeted at ensuring that “all children and youth have access to educational opportunities.”
“HCF is playing a unique leadership role,” says Terry, about why HCF is the home of their new fund. “The quality and commitment of the personnel at the community foundation is respected in the city. It’s recognized as an organization that believes in the future.”
Both Brenda and Terry love Hamilton and marvel at how readily Hamiltonians participate in philanthropy – with time or resources, each according to what he or she can do. While they are two outstanding examples, whose impact is incalculable, Terry just says “if you have a chance to make a difference, you should take it.”
Excerpt from 2016 Annual Report
This work depicts words overlaid with distinct shapes — the right represents the hospital staff, lawyers and funding, while the left is the family. Of interest is the independence of both shapes — never quite taking over or overlapping, but instead respecting the space and the support needed. Stephanie Seagram, Artist
When your child is in the hospital, the last thing you want to hear is you’ve lost your job because you’ve spent too much time away from work.
Thanks to the medical-legal partnership started by Pro Bono Ontario (PBO) at McMaster Children’s Hospital, low-income families can get much-needed legal support when faced with such difficult circumstances. “These are families who are already doing so much,” says lawyer, Hilary Mack. “This service can take a little stress off their plate.”
Hilary’s title is “triage lawyer”—a nod to the hospital setting and a direct reference to her role as a resource for quick assessment and referral. “Like a doctor would look at a patient, I look at their legal issue and recommend how best to address it.”
Consultations often happen at the child’s bedside but an important part of the program is training clinicians to recognize the signs of legal concerns so they can refer families. The most common concerns Hilary sees relate to family law, immigration, government benefits, employment, education and housing. She refers more complex cases to the program’s partners Ross & McBride and Gowlings, who take the cases pro bono, and the Hamilton Community Legal Clinic.
PBO has established medical-legal partnerships in five children’s hospitals since 2009. The Hamilton program is a pilot supported by the Ruth Hindmarsh Atkinson Award. A grant from HCF’s Edith H. Turner Foundation Fund is expanding Hilary’s time onsite, which is critical to keeping the program top of mind for the clinicians who refer families to the services.
PBO executive director Lynn Burns says the program not only helps overwhelmed families focus on caring for their children, but the experience at Toronto SickKids shows other long-lasting benefits.
“Families may have multiple legal problems that have been unresolved for years,” she says. “In our SickKids evaluation, none of the families had sought legal assistance prior to the social worker suggesting they contact our program—and 89 percent said we improved their financial situation. It’s a good poverty reduction strategy.”
Excerpt from 2016 Annual Report
“When women give today, one thing they want to know about is the impact they are having,” says Renate Davidson.
Renate is a long-term, respected volunteer with HCF and many other organizations across Hamilton. As a founding donor to HCF’s Women 4 Change (W4C) initiative, she is struck by how women’s philanthropy “has evolved to something very different from just writing a cheque,” she says.
“A collaborative giving circle like W4C, for example, is an exciting new way to care for our community. It provides a unique opportunity to learn, to give, to work with other women and to see measurable results.”
New research confirms women’s growing influence through individual and family philanthropy, and provides detail on how they prefer to give. Women now want to contribute money as well as time, to connect with others as they give, and to have an ongoing relationship with the causes they support. They value learning about community needs and responses, and they want to see measurable results.
Meeting these expectations drives both Women4Change and HCF’s engagement with individual donors. Since its 2012 launch, W4C has grown to more than 60 women collaborating to improve the lives of Hamilton’s women and girls. At the same time, they are enhancing their own capacity as philanthropists through expert presentations, site visits, and conversations with grant recipients.
W4C builds on HCF’s long history of generous and visionary female donors, notes Sheree Meredith, VP Philanthropic Services. “Both our first gift and our first bequest came from women,” she says. “The Chaney-Ensign sisters who made post-secondary education possible for hundreds of Hamiltonians are another of dozens of powerful examples of women whose philanthropy continues to have a transformative impact on our city.“
“I would encourage anyone to have a conversation with the foundation about how they can participate in giving to our community in ways that are most meaningful to them,” says Renate. “This has been a lifelong learning for me, and has sensitized me to our city’s challenges and opportunities. Working through HCF has been incredibly satisfying.”
Click here to make a donation to Women 4 Change.
‘We conquered yesterday’ — from a Hamilton Youth Poets piece — is such an optimistic sentiment, strengthened by the suggestion of struggle. Looking forward and back at once. I aimed to complement this approach with a dynamic painted lettering style. Jamie Lawson, Artist Read the poem that inspired the artwork
The art of spoken word is an ancient tradition that continues today through Hamilton Youth Poets. Created in 2012, “HYP” provides a platform for new young voices to muse on their city through poetry, journalism and hip-hop.
“HYP gives Hamilton’s youth have an opportunity to develop their creative skills and have their voices heard,” says artistic director Nea Reid. “It’s a ‘brave’ and positive space to express ideas, stories, experiences or simply a new concept.”
HYP supports youth who want to engage in the literary arts, develop their voice, and bring it all together at poetry slams – competitions at which poets read or recite original work, and which feature a broad range of voices, styles, cultural traditions, and approaches to writing and performance. “Teams come together and talk about their lives, where they’re from, their social situations and the world around them.” says Nea. “They connect with people that they never would have met. And that creates bridges, community and social activism.”
Nea lauds the support HYP has received from the community, especially from Hamilton Community Foundation. “Their support has allowed us to pursue high-calibre year-round programming, to grow and to embrace more young Hamilton poets.” It has also helped HYP’s small but passionate team of volunteers conduct school workshops across Hamilton. They reach out to students to share what happens when you become part of a collective of writers, including developing your literary skills, public speaking abilities, and the leadership qualities needed to take you further in life.
Kenneth Salazar-Cordova says coming out to slams was his best decision ever. “I made it through my first performance nervously,” says Ken, who made it to the HYP team and competed nationally. “I’ve developed certain skills that probably would have taken me a lot longer without HYP. And it has built my self-esteem and self-confidence.”
“It’s such an amazing cultural scene in Hamilton,” says HYP member Lex Leosis, “It’s so family- and community-oriented, and so proud of its collective roots. It’s very inclusive. At HYP, we mentor each other, learn from each other, and age just doesn’t matter. Whether poets, songwriters or MCs, mastering their craft is what we’re all trying to do, and HYP provides us with the opportunity to do it.”
Culture of Peace Hamilton is a working group of the United Nations in Canada (Hamilton Branch). It is one of a worldwide cluster of groups and individuals that consider peace-building and non-violence to be important local and international steps to social transformation. 
For the past sixteen years Culture of Peace Hamilton has focused its efforts on six pathways of action, originally drafted by Nobel Peace Laureates, researched by UNESCO, and proclaimed by the United Nations under Manifesto 2000. They are an invitation to citizens – actions everyone can take to instill a culture of peace in their daily lives.
Globally, seventy-five million people have pledged to follow these pathways to help diverse communities function better through greater cooperation and conflict resolution.
Culture of Peace Hamilton continues to follow the pathways by reinforcing environmental issues, spiritual values and by working with like-minded organizations. The group meets regularly and hosts peace luncheons twice a year. Peace poles and a thousand narcissi bulbs have been donated to the Peace Garden at Hamilton City Hall. These installations and the garden help reinforce ideas of peace in tangible ways.
Your support of the United Nations Culture of Peace Hamilton Fund will provide ongoing support for these important peace initiatives.
To donate online, click here:
The Rotary Club of Hamilton carries out a literacy program at north-end schools, where club members provide reading assistance to students throughout the school year.
The Rotary Club of Hamilton carries out a literacy program at north-end schools, where club members provide reading assistance to students throughout the school year.
Hamilton’s first and largest Rotary Club, with almost a century of putting the Rotary motto of “Service above Self” in practice, has created a way for the club’s good work to be supported in perpetuity.
Of the 12 local clubs, the Downtown Rotary Club has become the first to launch an endowment fund with Hamilton Community Foundation. There are two options for making a gift to the Rotary Forever Fund: as an immediate donation from a living donor, or as a bequest identified in a person’s will. All gifts are pooled and invested. The capital is left untouched and only the investment income is disbursed to support Rotary projects and initiatives, as decided by the club’s Board of Directors.
“With the creation of this fund at HCF, we’re giving people a unique opportunity to leave a legacy that supports the work of Rotary,” says Robert Beres, Club President for 2006-2007. “In our club alone we have members with decades of service to Rotary; we can now offer them a way to benefit the club’s projects forever.” In addition, the fund is “open”, meaning that Rotarians and non-Rotarians alike can contribute.
The Downtown Rotary Club still undertakes annual fundraising campaigns and events such as its Hallowe’en Haunted House, or Spring Uncorked, a food and wine tasting event. Monies raised from those and other initiatives help to fund literacy programs and other supports aimed at underprivileged youth.
“Our club has given out an average of $72,000 annually in charitable donations over the past five years, and our members provide hands-on service too, such as helping children at north-end schools learn to read and do math,” explains past president Keith McIntyre. “The endowment fund at HCF is a different vehicle for giving – it allows us to take the long view and build something permanent.”
Excerpt from 2006-2007 Annual Report
Hamilton’s lawyers have come together as a community to launch a permanent endowment fund to benefit local children. Long known for their support of a myriad of causes with their resources and time, Hamilton’s lawyers have chosen to work collectively to build a fund that will have an impact in perpetuity.
“We want this fund to be here to help Hamilton’s children forever,” says Justice Ray Harris, who was the driving force behind efforts to create the fund. “An endowed fund at Hamilton Community Foundation is the perfect way to ensure that.”
The Lawyers’ Legacy for Children the Ray Harris Fund is intended to collectively inspire and enable children and young people to nourish and develop their knowledge, talents and values in the spirit of community, generosity and responsibility that has characterized the contributions of Hamilton’s lawyers.
The Hamilton Lawyers’ Club agreed to collaborate with HCF to establish the fund and developed the process by which regular grants will be recommended in the future.
The fund’s founding contribution came from the proceeds of the 2006 stage production, ‘Inherit the Wind’, which Justice Harris co-directed with former Theatre Aquarius artistic director Max Reimer. Local lawyers and judges played all the roles to the delight of Hamilton audiences.
This unique theatre genre – the Lawyers’ Show – originated in Hamilton in 1983 when the Lawyers’ Club produced ‘12 Angry Men’ (also directed by Justice Harris). It has since been widely emulated in support of many worthy causes in communities across Canada and the U.S.
Hamilton’s lawyers and judges have made substantial contributions to augment the fund and are planning another Lawyers’ Show and other fundraising initiatives to build the endowment.
“Thanks to the generosity of Hamilton’s lawyers, this fund will endure for centuries,” says Justice Harris. “It will have a lasting impact that reflects our legal community’s commitment to the community at large and will always be there to help the children.”
Excerpt from 2008-2009 Annual Report
A legacy that continues
Since 2008, 20 grants totaling $136,901 have been awarded from the Lawyers Legacy for Children the Ray Harris Fund supporting important initiatives throughout the community, including:
The fund continues to grow, with the fund capital reaching over $500,000 – truly a legacy that will have an impact forever.
The Riverdale Salad Bowl is a community solution to provide access to fresh produce and improve food security. We were proud to support the community garden in this great east Hamilton neighbourhood.
A grant from HCF is helping to put more girls on the playing field by providing sport hijabs to 20 local schools. For Muslim girls, taking part in athletics can be challenging when wearing a traditional hijab due to the fear that it could fall off, or that the fastening pin could injure a player. It’s a particular risk in sports like basketball and soccer. Sport hijabs eliminate these risks with a design that accommodates physical activity. The program, also supported by the Hamilton Muslim Association, will make the hijabs available on loan, just like other sports equipment, helping the girls to enjoy and reap the benefits of more athletic participation both in gym class and on school teams.
Excerpt from Legacy newsletter, Fall 2015
Donations to the Foundation are invested for the long term in public markets and in alternative investments. Investment income is then allocated annually to support granting, community leadership and operations. The summary and charts presented here provide both a financial snapshot and a history of recent activity that underlies the grants and community leadership activities represented in this annual report, made possible by remarkable donors.
Donations to the Foundation are from individuals, corporations and other charities. Donors may contribute to named endowment or flowthrough funds, to the Board-directed Community Fund, or to HCF’s community leadership projects.
The $35.1 million in donations this year is the second highest total in HCF’s history. Annual donations are influenced by the timing of the realization of donations in wills and significant one-time donations like the $27.7 million in donations of property and private equity. As illustrated in Chart 1, annual donations have ranged between $3.2 and $35.1 million over the past eight years. The five-year rolling average of donations ranges from $5.0 million to $13.3 million over the past eight years.
The five-year rolling average number of donations is 1,787 with 2019-20 at 1,853. The number of donations fluctuates based on “in memoriam” donations and the number and nature of events sponsored by donors to raise money for their funds.
Chart 1
Grants are made annually from both endowed and flowthrough funds. Because flowthrough fund balances are distributed in a shorter time period, granting from these funds can materially influence HCF’s total annual amount granted.
As illustrated in Chart 2, grants and community leadership project spending over the past eight years has ranged from $4.7 million to this year’s historic high of $11.5 million. Granting from endowment funds was reduced in 2013 as a result of the decline in investment returns in 2012 which a) lowered the asset base used for the granting calculation (currently four percent of the fund balances), and b) resulted in less income available to grant. Flowthrough granting and expenditures on community leadership projects has ranged from 22 to 56 percent of total granting in any given year and is dependent on the timing and nature of flowthrough and project activity. At 893, the number of grants for this year is 37 percent higher than the eight-year average.
Chart 2
Investments traded in active markets are reported at fair market value. Investments not actively traded are recorded at their cost less any impairment of their value.
To support our strategy of aligning our assets with our mission and to provide a more diverse and robust portfolio, HCF has committed to investing in alternative asset classes including loans to charities and not-for-profits, private debt, real estate, infrastructure and private equity. These alternatives are consistent with the Foundation’s long-term investment horizon and liquidity requirements. Since these investments are not actively traded, they are valued at cost in the investments. These alternatives total $25.8 million.
HCF invests according to policy guidelines established by the Board of Directors. Two committees of the Board oversee investments to ensure compliance with the policy:
As an endowment builder, HCF’s policy focuses on long-term investing and is supported by reserve accounts that are currently at their policy maximum.
The investment policy sets out a total portfolio target asset mix, as well as a range around these targets. The public market investment managers have mandates within this targeted asset mix and use their discretion to invest the portfolios within this range. Chart 3 reflects the current and target asset mix. Note: $25 million of private equity relates to a fund established by a donor and is not part of the asset mix or the consolidated portfolio results.
Chart 3
Two long-term portfolios are invested in the public markets with Jarislowsky Fraser, and Connor, Clark & Lunn. Chart 4 compares those portfolios against benchmarks as follows:
Benchmarks reflect the performance of each market index based on HCF’s specific target asset mix. Comparing actual results to the benchmark measures the value added by investment managers compared to the average market performance. HCF’s investment policy target is a long-term investment return in the 6.5 to 7.5 percent range.
Chart 4
The effect of the global pandemic has materially affected investment returns, resulting in a -8.4 percent public market return for the year. The seven-year annualized return at 6.8 percent is within the targeted investment policy range and is 1.2 percent higher than the 5.6 percent benchmark. As noted in the financial highlights, the current 10-year annualized return of 7.0 percent is in the target range and is higher than the benchmark by 1.2 percent.
Impact investments enable donations to endowed funds to drive positive change beyond granting, because they represent investments of capital that deliver financial returns coupled with positive social and/or environmental outcomes. In addition, these investments provide a pool uncorrelated to the public markets which, in turn, buffers the portfolio from the volatility currently experienced.
More than 15 percent of our long-term assets are in impact investments. Chart 5 illustrates HCF’s impact investing progress over the past five years, with $25 million currently placed or outstanding and another $15 million committed. This brings the total commitment to $40 million, up from $34 million last year. Impact investments cover areas including affordable housing, arts, environment and sustainable development.
Chart 5
Local loans since inception total $9.7 million with $7.1 million outstanding at year end. Chart 6 shows the impact areas our loans have supported. Since the loan program’s 2012 inception, $2.6 million in loan principal has been repaid and recycled as new loans. In addition, the interest from these loans supports HCF granting.
Chart 6
IRP is a Government of Canada program being delivered nationally by partners including Community Foundations of Canada. As the first phase in the government’s long-term investment in social finance, the IRP’s goal is to make social-purpose organizations “investment ready” so they can make a difference in new and innovative ways through their participation in the social finance market. HCF has partnered with community foundations in London and Niagara, and the McMaster Innovation Park to manage the program regionally on behalf of Community Foundations of Canada. The first request for proposals for funding in January created enormous interest nationally and garnered 65 submissions to our regional partnership. Approved funding is expected to be released in June 2020. As an additional benefit, the IRP brought a growing number of potential opportunities for local loans to HCF’s attention.
These investments include private equity, private debt and real estate investments. Many of these investments are long term in nature, are maintained at cost and do not have a regular income stream. As these investments are maintained at cost, their results include interest income and realized gains, but not unrealized gains. Results for these investments are closely monitored and are reported when realized. Chart 7 identifies the investment areas, with $18.0 million placed and a total commitment of $33 million across 21 investments.
Chart 7
Operating expenses for the fiscal year ended March 31, 2020 total $2.5 million and were 2.5 percent higher than last year. Staffing costs related to the Foundation’s 22 employees represent 70 percent of HCF operating costs.
In addition to breaking out cost by type, operating costs are allocated to each of the Foundation’s operating areas: grants administration, community and philanthropic leadership, community relations and knowledge dissemination, development activities, and administration and governance. Examples of community and philanthropic leadership include convening around the city’s critical issues and fostering the growth of philanthropy by sharing staff time and knowledge to support other charities. Charts 8 and 9 illustrate these costs by operating area and by expense type.
Charts 8 and 9
The Foundation’s annual development expenses are not necessarily attributable to the donations received in that year. The nature of donations to the Foundation can result in costs preceding the receipt of the donation by several years (for example, donations through wills). As a result, consistent with the community foundation sector, operating costs are evaluated by a ratio of total operating expenses to average total assets. Ratios fall within a range depending on the size and stage of the community foundation’s development.
Management considers the ratio of 1.26 percent (1.25 percent in 2019), as illustrated in Chart 10, to be within an acceptable range for a foundation of HCF’s size, stage and level of community leadership, compared against benchmarks established in the community foundation sector. We continue to monitor both the actual results and the benchmarks on an ongoing basis.
Chart 10
Hamilton Community Foundation’s total assets of $201 million at March 31, 2020 include balances of HCF funds and funds held on behalf of others at $1.7 million.
Hamilton Community Foundation’s fund balances, illustrated in Chart 11, represent accumulated donations plus the net investment earnings on these donations, minus granting and operating costs. Funds include both endowed and flowthrough funds. Endowed funds are held permanently and grant from investment earnings. Flowthrough funds are fully distributed as grants over a pre-determined term.
Chart 11
The fund balances have grown 55 percent to $198 million at the year ended March 31, 2020 from $128 million in 2013. Donations of $35.1 million included $4.4 million in flowthrough donations that were largely distributed as grants in the year and, as a result, do not remain in the fund balances at year end. This results in a modest total funds balance growth of 4.8 per cent for the year. The number of funds has grown 19 percent to 377 from 318 in 2013.
Donate Today