Five London, Ont., non-profit organizations will be receiving a combined $1.08 million as part of the annual Community Vitality Grant, focusing on housing initiatives and food insecurity.
The grants from London Community Foundation focus on areas outlined in the organization’s vital signs report with funding provided by private donors.
Director of grants Lori Runciman says the recipients for 2022 all have projects addressing issues highlighted by the COVID-19 pandemic.
“The pandemic essentially is continuing, and the consequences … are also continuing and worsening. We see the headlines – housing is one of the most pressing issues,” Runciman said.
Recipients will receive the funding over a period of up to three years with check-ins by the LCF to support them along the way.
The chosen organizations and the projects they’re running are:
- Pathways Employment Help Centre and Chippewas of the Thames First Nation – Building New Futures Together
- London Cares Homeless Response Services – Permanent Supportive Housing Program for Housing Deprived
- CMHA Thames Valley Addiction and Mental Health Services – Community Outreach and Support Team (COAST)
- Glen Cairn Community Resource Centre (GCCRC) – Food for All Project
- Southwest Ontario Aboriginal Health Access Centre (SOAHAC) – Minomode-zewin nunge-gehwin “Healthy ways of eating”
The Building New Futures Together project will help train members of Chippewas Nation in construction to then use those skills to build micro homes for the community. The joint initiative will receive $342,000 over two years.
“There’s a lot of excitement within the community, among the members that have decided to participate, you know, in being a part of that construction program, because it gives them the opportunity to see themselves in building these homes for members of their community,” said Chippewas Jacqueline French.
“It may end up that they’re building these homes where it’s family members that are moving in because we are a very tight-knit community.”
London Cares will be using funds to create supportive housing for people with the most complex needs who struggle to find a place to live.
LCHRS is creating a new housing solution to support those who fall through gaps in the current system with $350,000 over three years.
In addition, the COAST program, which started as a pilot project in 2021, is continuing into its second year with a $138,000 grant.
COAST works to reduce police-led responses to mental health or addictions crises with a special team of health-care workers responding instead.
GCCRC will receive $118,984 over three years to enhance and strengthen its ability to provide healthy, nutritious and more culturally appropriate food to London’s communities in more sustainable ways.
SOAHAC will receive $135,016 to create a project to address food insecurity by offering a Traditional Foods Bank for urban Indigenous families. The pilot project aims to use food as means of healing and reconnection to culture.
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