Vancouver Foundation Commits $2 Million to Immediate Extreme Weather Response

Funds target relief and recovery in communities and populations hit hardest by catastrophic flooding

[UPDATE: December 14, 2021]

We’re proud to have been able to award grants to the following groups as they support communities who have been hit hardest by the recent floods:

• • Abbotsford Community Foundation

• • Archway Community Services Society

• • BC Interior Community Foundation

• • Coldwater Indian Band

• • Conayt Friendship Society

• • Cook’s Ferry Indian Band

• • First Nations’ Emergency Services Society of BC

• • Guru Nanak’s Free Kitchen Society

• • Khalsa Aid Canada

• • Lower Similkameen Indian Band

• • Nooaitch Indian Band

• • Pauquachin First Nation

• • Sanctuary Health

• • Shackan Indian Band

• • Snuneymuxw First Nation

• • Sumas Indian Band

• • Upper Similkameen Indian Band

• • Watari Research Association

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The last week has been a difficult one for so many British Columbians.

Perilous flooding and mass evacuations left 17,000 of our friends and neighbours displaced and the future of their homes is uncertain. And now, there is a long road ahead to recover and rebuild. In Abbotsford alone the estimated cost is over a billion dollars. But it’s times like these when British Columbians come together — because we know that community is what gets us through the darkest hours.

Supporting Community in Urgent Need

As a community foundation, we feel a special responsibility to do whatever we can to support our neighbours and local organizations in the days and weeks ahead. That’s why we’ve committed $2-million today for the communities and populations hit hardest by this catastrophic flooding through our Community Response Fund.

We’re granting an immediate $1-million to the Canadian Red Cross to get help to those in and around the areas most affected by the flooding. These funds will provide a vital lifeline to those communities at a critical time and boost the Red Cross in their efforts to help those areas recover and rebuild.

And we’re committing another $1-million that will be granted in the coming days to local organizations at work on the ground in the Fraser Valley and the Interior. These flexible, unrestricted operating grants will provide targeted support to groups serving those who experience the most vulnerability — like migrant workers, and land-based Indigenous nations in those regions. These one-time grants will flow to local organizations through a community-informed process that is now underway.

“We’re more than Vancouver’s foundation,” explains Kevin McCort, President & CEO of Vancouver Foundation, “we invest in communities in every corner of BC. Thanks to the generosity and foresight of those who came before us, our endowment positions Vancouver Foundation to step up in urgent times like these.”

Gratitude For Your Support

Thank you to our donors, volunteers, and community members for making responses like this possible. It’s only because of the foresight of past generations and the generosity our community today that our permanent endowment has positioned us to be there when community needs us most. And thanks to community members like you — whatever the future holds — Vancouver Foundation will always be here to serve our province in perpetuity.