Grant Impact Stories
The West Vancouver Foundation values innovation, experimentation and curiosity. We also place a high value on sharing what we learn openly and honestly, and we want our grantees to do the same. Grant recipients submit an Impact Report when their project is complete. You will find some of their stories of impact in the community here.
Find our 2021 Grant Summary here.
In 2020 we granted over $1 million! 2020 Grants
We offer different types of grants throughout the year.
If you would like to donate to the Foundation, to help contribute to programs such as these you can donate to a specific fund, donate to our Caring Community Fund or open your own fund.
Past Grant Stories
Girl Guides of Canada (GGC) enables girls to be confident, resourceful and courageous, and to make a difference in the world. To mark their 100th anniversary in West Vancouver, they undertook an environmental service project with the help of a Micro Grant from the West Vancouver Foundation.
The 2021 project saw all the girls in West Vancouver Guiding units (Sparks, Brownies, Guides, Pathfinders and Rangers) participating to enhance a degraded area of a West Vancouver park to enhance the park an dhelp mitigate the effect of climate change. 25 huge bags of ivy were removed by the Pathfinders and Rangers (12 – 16 years old) over three working sessions, and then on the actual planting day, Sparks, Brownies and Guides joined the older girls to plant a variety of shrubs and deciduous small trees suited to this more shaded area (salal, Oregon grape coastal, dull Oregon grape, sword ferns, red alder, red elderberry , coastal snowberry)
In spite of some unexpected changes (due to COVID), the overall objective of having the girls participate in a service project to benefit our community was still successfully achieved.
Read more in this Beacon article (page 3).
Project: Refresh, Refurbish, Revitalize
Grant Program: Community Grants 2020
Funds: Ian and Rosemary Mottershead Fund
The community benefits from this grant came in many forms. First, the space will continue to be a warm, comfortable, livable space for seniors who are both Canadians & NEW Canadians from Iran. The upgrades have given a new revitalized energy within the members and volunteers at The Centre. Through word of mouth, other seniors come to see the improvements and consider being part of the programs offered each week day. When seniors are involved and having fun together it reduces stress in their lives which create a healthier person both physically and mentally.
Without this financial help, we would not have had the funds required to do this upgrade. This will benefit all our members and volunteers to a total of over 150 people. Our new upgraded space will allow us to open our doors to other groups like “Art Crawl” which will benefit local artists and art lovers.
Program: Avalon Womens’ Centre North Shore
Grant Program: Community Grants 2020
Funds: Howard Martin Fund
“Avalon Women’s Centre North Shore aims to provide a safe, supportive refuge for women who are struggling with addiction. By providing this space for women to access childminding, peer support, counselling, education and mentoring, we were able to play an important role in many women’s recovery process. Thanks to the support of funders like West Vancouver Foundation, we were able to provide all these services at no cost, helping to reduce barriers for women who are single parents or struggling financially and are unable to afford vital addiction support.
J is a 22 year old single mom with an 8-month old son, B. Almost every day, during the week and on weekends, J brings B in a stroller by bus. They are both well-dressed, with clean blankets and supplies. She is patient and calm with B and he is so delightful, everyone loves to see him smile and wiggle with joy. He trusts the Avalon childminder, so mom can attend her peer support meeting on her own. Here, she can connect with women of all ages and be supported by other young moms who understand her and her struggles. If you saw them, you would find it hard to believe that just a year ago, J was on the street, in an abusive relationship, taken there by inter-generational trauma and addiction. While pregnant, she went to treatment and was referred to us by community partners for aftercare. In the four months she’s been here, she has blossomed into a self-assured and sociable young woman. Eager to turn around and help others, J recently introduced a pregnant friend to Avalon, bringing her in for help and referrals. Recently, J also started leading the Friday peer support meeting and is actively welcoming and supporting other women who are new in recovery.”
Caitlin, Avalon Recovery Centre