Vancouver Foundation
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| Founded | incorporated 1943 (established by act of the Provincial legislature, 1950) |
|---|---|
| Founders | W.J. VanDusen, Gordon Farrell & Family, F. Ronald Graham, George Kidd, H. R. MacMillan, W. H. Malkin, C. T. McHattie, Chris Spencer, A. H. Williamson, W. C. Woodward |
| Focus | Community foundation |
| Location | |
|
Area served
|
British Columbia |
| Method | Donations and Grants |
|
Key people
|
Board Chair, Jason McLean; President & CEO, Kevin McCort |
| Endowment | Can$985 million |
|
Employees
|
50 |
| Slogan | Mission Statement: to harness the gifts of energy, ideas, time, and money to make meaningful and lasting impacts in communities. |
| Website | [1] |
The Vancouver Foundation, founded in 1943 and named after the city of Vancouver, is Canada’s largest community foundation,[citation needed] which administers over 1,600 funds and assets totalling $930 million, on behalf of individuals, families, corporations and charities.
Since founded in 1943, Vancouver Foundation, in partnership with its donors, has distributed more than $1 billion to thousands of community projects and programs. In 2014, Vancouver Foundation and its donors made more than 4,900 grants, and distributions totalling approximately $57 million, to registered charities across Canada.[citation needed]
Each year, about 70 percent of grant amounts are received within the Lower Mainland region with the remainder in other parts of the province of British Columbia.[1]
Grant recipients range from social services to medical research groups, to organizations devoted to arts and culture, the environment, education, children and families, youth, and animal welfare.[2]
By 2017, the foundation's grant recipients will be required to release their work under Creative Commons licence, which permits anyone to use the product freely without copyright limitations.[1]
Vancouver Foundation works with individuals, corporations and charitable agencies to create permanent endowments that generate income in perpetuity. This income supports thousands of charities across British Columbia.
Vancouver foundation is a member of Community Foundations of Canada, a national membership organization of 191 community foundations across Canada who contribute time, leadership and financial support to local initiatives. It is also a sector champion member of Imagine Canada, a national program to promote public and corporate giving, volunteering and support to the community.
History
Vancouver Foundation started in 1943 with one person. Alice MacKay had saved $1,000 from her secretarial job and wanted to help homeless women trapped in a cycle of poverty.
At the same time, local industrialist and philanthropist Whitford Julian VanDusen knew the potential of building a permanent endowment that could benefit many charitable activities. As Director of the Vancouver Welfare Federation (now the United Way of the Lower Mainland) and Chair of its Endowment Committee, he had studied models of community foundations for several years. By 1943, he had overseen the establishment and incorporation of Vancouver Foundation. However, at the time, it was nothing more than a legal entity with virtually no capital.
Inspired by MacKay's generosity, VanDusen added $10,000 to her endowment and encouraged nine friends to match his own gift. The nine other founding families were:
-
-
- Whitford Julian VanDusen
- Gordon Farrell & family
- F. Ronald Graham
- George Kidd
- H. R. MacMillan
- W. H. Malkin
- C. T. McHattie
- Chris Spencer
- A. H. Williamson
- W. C. Woodward
-
The $101,000 dollars has now grown into a major charitable force with an endowment of roughly $1 billion.[3]
In 1950, the Foundation was incorporated by the Legislature of British Columbia in a Special Act.[4]
Charity registration
It is registered as a public Charity with Canada Revenue Agency with charity number 119281640-RR0001.
See also
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ Vancouver Foundation | Recognition
- ↑ Vancouver Foundation | Magazine 2014 - Reaching $1 Billion, page 7
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
External links
- Official website Information about activities.
- Vancouver Foundation Act
