A $60 million provincial fund to help non-profits, and the creation of a provincial day of recognition for those organizations was the result of consultation with charities around the province over the last year, said Langley East MLA Megan Dykeman, parliamentary secretary for community development and non-profits.
“I heard, really, two things,” Dykeman told the Langley Advance Times.
“The first was that there was a real need for recognition of the partnership and the important role that nonprofits play,” Dykeman recalled.
“The second thing I heard was, ‘we really need a funding commitment as resources are strained and stable funding is super important for organizations to have certainty.’”
On Oct. 30, the newly proclaimed B.C. Nonprofit Day, Dykeman and premier David Eby announced the Stronger Community Services Fund.
“We’ve seen little organizations to large organizations that make a difference in the social well-being of our communities and also contribute hugely to our economy,” Dykeman said.
“Langley has a very robust not-for-profit sector that provides so many services – and we see that throughout communities and British Columbia –but boy, we have some great ones right there in our hometown, that’s for sure,” Dykeman said.
Organizations like Langley Hospice, “who are there in some of our darkest days,” Dykeman remarked.
“I remember the empathy for my dad [from the Hospice] when my mom passed away.”
And organizations like Langley Meals on Wheels, and Langley Community Services, “that work to provide support for people that are new to our country or community,” Dykeman said. “They impact our lives.”
The fund total included already-approved grants that will benefit several Langley-based groups, Dykeman advised, with grants going to Fraser Region Community Justice Initiatives, one of the oldest restorative justice organizations in Canada ($216,000), as well as Daughters of Hope, which helps black, newcomers, and racialized youth, adults, and families navigate social services, housing and finances($150,000), along with the Stalew Arts & Cultural Society, which advocates for Indigenous artists living in Coast Salish territories.($100,000).
Other nonprofit groups were being invited to apply to the Vancouver Foundation, which will be dispersing the funds and was to begin accepting applications Dec. 1.
A provincial estimate says B.C. has more than 31,000 non-profit organizations employing about 335,000 people. Non-profits make an economic contribution of $28 billion to the province’s gross domestic product.
READ ALSO: Langley City, Township to split more than $31 million in provincial funds
READ ALSO: COVID benefits to Langley East businesses totalled $5.8 million: MLA