Stock Photo: Shutter Stock. Submitted by Community Foundation.
Sophie Gray
Local Journalism Initiative
The Community Foundation of the South Okanagan Similkemeen announced a new responsible communities small grant in a virtual town hall meeting Wednesday afternoon.
The $500 grant is a jointly funded project between the Community Foundation of the South Okanagan Similkameen and the Vancouver Foundation given to people in the South Okanagan who are helping communities in the area stay connected during the COVID-19 pandemic.
“Over the last few weeks, we have witnessed how folks in our communities are self-organizing through online platforms to support each other and address social isolation,” said Kim English, Community Foundation’s regional response development officer. “The community foundation along with our co-funder, the Vancouver Foundation, were interested to support these citizen-led movements by delivery of small responsive grants.”
The grants are intended to fund small responsive projects taken on by households in the South Okanagan that help with issues related to vulnerable and isolated people, like grocery shopping for seniors or sharing skills online to keep people busy.
“These can be arts and culture workshops, cooking demonstrations, storytelling or yoga and meditation sessions,” said English.
The grant will cover between $50 to $500 of costs associated with materials, food, mileage and subscription costs.
To be eligible, projects must be completed by individuals or family members from the same household only and must not involve more than three people total in order to safely comply with social distancing measures, said English.
The grant will be offered in two phases. The first phase of applications will open this Friday and closes July 1. The second phase of grants will be available in the fall. All applications, said English, will be reviewed by a volunteer committee on a rolling basis.
“Households who have a great idea to strengthen belonging and connectedness in their community are encouraged to apply,” said English.
Applications can be found through the Community Foundation of the South Okanagan Similkameen’s website at https://www.cfso.net/responsive-neighbourhood-small-grants/. Applications for the first round of grants open Friday, April 24.
