Selected Past Charities

The following are the charities selected in our past meetings. Congratulation to all!

December 6, 2021

West Van United Church Refugee Sponsorship

West Van United Church’s refugee sponsorship program helps refugees begin a new life in Canada. Efforts were revitalized in 2015, sparked by the photo of young Alan Kurdi being pulled from the Mediterranean waters where he perished, along with his mother and brother. Since then, they have walked beside several families as they began their new lives in Canada. They have also supported other community and church groups to bring more than 20 people to safety.

WVUC serves refugees who have their UNHCR status (UN High Commission for Refugee), and once a family is selected, they work on bringing them to Canada. As all of their work is done by volunteers, our 100WWC donation will be put toward living expenses for the families, including food, shelter, clothing and transportation. WVUC is committed to provide these expenses for one year.

September 13, 2021

Backpack Buddies

Backpack Buddies' mission is to ensure food security for vulnerable children in BC. Many children rely on school meal programs, but over the weekend may not eat at all. They help fill the weekend hunger gap - a time when children go without the support of school breakfast and lunch programs - by providing meals and snacks for the weekend directly to those who need them.

The program is coordinated through teachers, administrators and parents who advise them on the needs of their students and help identify the children who could benefit most from receiving a bag of food for the weekend. Through our Buddy School Program, we connect with schools in Metro Vancouver that have capacity to fundraise and volunteer to pack bags of food for children in need.

Last year they delivered over 49,000 backpacks of food to children across BC who would otherwise not have eaten on the weekend. Backpack Buddies currently supports 104 students across 5 North Vancouver schools. Our $10,000 donation will sponsor the cost of 648 backpacks, totalling 5832 meals. It would enable 18 students to receive year-round support.

June 7, 2021

Royal Canadian Marine Search and Rescue STN 1

Royal Canadian Marine Search and Rescue (RCMSAR) is a not-for-profit volunteer-based organization that operates more than 30 marine rescue stations along the coast of British Columbia from Vancouver’s busy harbour to the remote waters of the North Coast. RCMSAR is a key part of the marine search and rescue (SAR) system, working in one of the most challenging search and rescue regions in the world. Our 900 volunteers are on call 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, ready to immediately respond to marine emergencies at a moment’s notice. Station 1 and 2 support the North Shore from Britannia Beach to Indian Arm and all waters in between with roughly 75 volunteers

There are no staff costs and no overhead. 99% of the 2020 expenses were for equipment and supplies. Donated funds would be used to acquire rescue equipment and gear, including person-in-water rescue recovery systems.

March 1, 2021

Jack.org

Jack.org is Canada's only national charity training and empowering young leaders to revolutionize mental health in every province and territory. Through Do Something, Jack Talks, Jack Chapters, and Jack Summits, young leaders identify and dismantle barriers to positive mental health in their communities. And through ambitious innovations in youth mental health like Be There, they give people the mental health resources they need to educate themselves. They're working towards a Canada where all young people understand how to take care of their own mental health and look out for each other.

Jack.org currently has 4 chapters on the North Shore and these reach almost 11,000 youth. Our donation will be used for initiatives such as setting up a Jack Talk at a school, distributing Exam Stress Kits, hosting a mental health awareness and education event for students or hosting a regional Jack Summit in North Vancouver.

December 7, 2020

Sage Transition House

SAGE Transition House is an 18-bed transition house that provides safety and support to women and their children fleeing abusive situations. Shelter, food, clothing, personal items, referrals, advocacy, individual support and support groups are offered for typically 30 days. SAGE Second Stage Housing program offers 2 private units within SAGE House for 3 to 6 months for women and their children who have left an abusive situation and have been referred by SAGE Transition House, another transition house or a community agency. The program is designed to provide ongoing transitional support for women and their children so they are able to successfully transition to independent lives free of abuse and violence. Our donation will be used to purchase a new vehicle so the women have transportation to their appointments which address their many issues.

September 14, 2020

North Shore Youth Safe House

North Shore Youth Safe House (NSYSH) provides short-term emergency housing and support services for youth, ages 13 - 18, who are homeless, or live in unsafe and dangerous situations. It is the only house in the Lower Mainland to serve 13 - 15 year-olds. Staffed 24 hours a day, the NSYSH services are designed to help youth return to a home safely or to an alternate living environment. Using an Integrated Case Management approach, skilled youth workers provide the community supports required to meet the complex needs of high-risk youth. Residents have access to Family Support Workers, Parent-Teen Mediation and Transitional Youth Workers, drug and alcohol assessment, on-going and after-care support, and referrals to other services such as medical help, mental health support, educational and career counselling.

June 1, 2020

The Harvest Project

Harvest Project’s mission is ‘extending a hand up, not a hand-out’ as they reach out to people challenged by family break-down, illness, job loss and poverty. They provide coaching, counsel, grocery and clothing support, as well as a rent-bank. Their Grocery Support Program currently supplies more than 300 families each month. Through the COVID-19 crisis, they can no longer accept food donations and now deliver grocery store gift cards to each client family’s front door. It will also require their counselling services to be delivered in a different way, which will require technical tools and staff to maintain connections with each client. The Harvest Project will use the donation to provide grocery gift cards and will also free up some funds for them to adapt their case management model.