Author: Daniel Bradbury

Introduction

Muskoka Community Foundation (MCF) is initiating an innovative granting approach for 2015. The Foundation is inviting Muskoka’s charities and their community partners to apply for “Spirit of Wasan Island Grants” for highly visible and collaborative projects that have an immediate impact in building a smart & caring Muskoka.

The inspiration for this granting opportunity is an outcome of MCF’s September 2014 symposium at Wasan Island, “Building a Smart & Caring Muskoka”, which was attended by thirty people representing Muskoka Community Foundation, donors, Muskoka charities, not-for-profit organizations and community and municipal leaders. The “Spirit of Wasan Island Grants” grew out of these conversations.

The report that summarizes this symposium is available here:

A total of $22,000 is available to one or more registered charity In Muskoka, for one or more projects. Multiple projects with smaller budgets may be given preference, if greater impact can be achieved.

The project must:

  • Be a specific, tangible and doable project.
  • Involve a collaboration of more than one organization that is led by a charity.
  • Have an outcome with high visibility that benefits all members of the collaborative group and the Muskoka Community Foundation.
  • Be completed in 2015.
  • Have a well-defined purpose that results in an impact that continues the spirit and energy initiated at Wasan Island.
  • Contribute to building a smart and caring Muskoka.

The application deadline is Friday, March 13, 2015 at 4:00 pm Eastern Time.

If you have any questions about grants, please contact Margaret Urquhart, Program Director at 705-646-1220 or

Approval of a grant does not commit MCF to future funding.

All successful applicants will be asked to publicly acknowledge MCF’s support of their initiative and partner with MCF in sharing the good news about their grant and initiative with the community of Muskoka.

Application Process

Please complete and sign your application in the space provided and email your completed application to by 4 pm (Eastern Time) on Friday, March 13, 2015.

Application PDF File

Application Word File

We will acknowledge that we’ve received your application, and we will contact you if we need additional information.

By signing this application the applicant expressly acknowledges and consents to release of information as required by MCF regarding applications received, decisions made and other matters relating to the granting process and in accordance with the Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act.

All decisions by the Muskoka Community Foundation board are final and not subject to review.

Muskoka Community Foundation Holds Governance Workshop

Muskoka Community Foundation is responding to the growing demand for good governance by hosting their 2nd Annual Governance Workshop for Muskoka’s Charities and Non-Profits on Saturday, October 18, 2014 at the Nipissing University Lecture Hall, Muskoka Campus in Bracebridge.

 

Don McCreesh will facilitate the Workshop. An active leader in voluntary sector governance with more than three decades experience, Don has served as a leader on the boards of 13 different nonprofit organizations. He is past Chair of the Board and HR and Governance Committee of Imagine Canada, where he led an initiative to bring governance, fundraising, accountability and management standards to Canada’s charitable sector.

 

The Foundation has expanded the curriculum from last year’s half-day workshop into a full day. The morning session will introduce the concept of good governance, and Board roles and duties, focusing on accountability, transparency and fiduciary responsibility. These topics will provide a background and foundation on the purpose of Boards and will set the foundation to carry out the director’s role.

 

The afternoon will be an in-depth workshop suited for staff leaders and senior volunteers that explores their unique relationship. The goal will be to cultivate a partnership between staff and the board of directors that respects and appreciates their distinct roles. Those who register for this session will have the opportunity to actively participate in the format by emailing discussion questions ahead of time. Don will use those questions to create the agenda.

We’re offering several registration options including online payment.

We are stewards of community resources, committed to creating a smart and caring Muskoka by acting with integrity, and being accessible, accountable and transparent to all our stakeholders.

Introduction

Dara Howell is an Olympic Freestyle skier from Huntsville, Ontario who won a gold medal in slope-style skiing at the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi. She is the first freestyle skier to win a gold medal in this event.

Inspired by the support of her community, Dara and her family approached the Muskoka Community Foundation midway through 2013 about creating an endowment fund to give back to those who had supported them on her journey to the Olympic podium.

In April 2014, the Howell family created the Dara’s  Fund at the Muskoka Community Foundation. The fund will build a legacy and provide resources and opportunities for Muskoka’s female athletes who excel in any sport to pursue their dreams, regardless of whether or not they are attending a post-secondary educational institution.

Conditions

To be eligible for a grant from this unique endowment fund you must be:

  • Female
  • A permanent residents of the District Municipality of Muskoka
  • Participating in any type of individual or team sport beyond the local club level regionally, provincially, nationally or internationally
  • Demonstrate a commitment to the True Sport values and principles to “Go For It, Play Fair, Respect Others, Stay Healthy, Have Fun, Include Others, Give Back”

Funding includes, but is not limited to those competing at post-secondary educational institutions as well as those at the regional, provincial, national or international level who are not pursuing a post-secondary education.

While the fund strives to grant to athletes competing in a variety of sports, both summer and winter, preference will be given to those competing in individual and non-traditional sports, such as freestyle skiing, surfing or tennis.

Funding can be used for:

  • Coaching fees
  • Team fees
  • Travel expenses
  • Equipment
Commitment to reconciliation

As a Community Foundation operating on the traditional lands of the Ojibway, the Chippewa, the Algonquin and the Odawa, and home to three sovereign nations – Wahta Mohawks First Nations, Moose Deer Point First Nation and the Moon River Métis – we cannot walk in a good way if we do not honour all our relations in our communities, and actively work to address the impacts of colonialism on Indigenous peoples on these lands, both past and present. Read More

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