Results of Your Generosity 2012 | I 2012 by the Numbers
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The Results of Your Generosity A report of what was made possible by Vancouver Foundation and our donors in 2012 Vancouver Foundation Board of Directors Mission Gordon MacDougall, Chair To harness the gifts of energy, ideas, Chief Justice Robert J. Bauman Kevin Bent time, and money to make meaningful Tom Bradley and lasting impacts in communities. Tung Chan Dr. Vera Frinton Anna Fung, Q.C. Ida Goodreau Paul Lacerte Miranda Lam Brandt C. Louie Vision John McLernon, Vice-Chair Healthy, vibrant and livable Lisa Pankratz communities across British Columbia. Barry Rivelis Malik Talib Vancouver Foundation Executive Faye Wightman President & CEO Diane Fulton Vice President & Chief Investment Officer William J. Hallett Vice President, Finance & Operations Craig Hikida Vice President, Development & Donor Services Martin Livingston Vice President, Marketing & Communications Your generosity is the beginning The document you hold in your hands is like the proverbial tip of the iceberg. These 50 pages are, as the title says, the results of your generosity. They are also the result of countless hours of hard work, meetings, and research by dedicated volunteers and staff. The projects highlighted within these pages are ideas to improve our community. They involve hundreds of people and millions of dollars. They are intended to make our communities healthier, stronger and more livable. If you are anything like me, you will read the following page (2012 By the Numbers) with a sense of wonder. Last year, more than 4,000 grants were made possible through your generosity, totaling more than $46 million. It’s amazing when you think about it... With this money and these projects, connections are made, lives are changed, people are fed or housed, opportunities are taken, families are strengthened, young people are educated, music is written, art is created, and fragile environments are protected. All this lies below the surface of the numbers quoted on that page. Looking back over the 70-year history of Vancouver Foundation, I Last year, more often wonder if our founders could have foreseen the monumental impact their efforts have made in helping communities become more than 4,000 grants connected and engaged or the inroads we’ve made to stem the tide of youth homelessness. were“ made It’s through the generosity of our donors past and present, whose possible through foresight in leaving a gift through their estate, setting up a fund or supporting a specific project, that has enabled us to support these your generosity, projects — projects that will contribute to the betterment of our society for years to come. totalling more That’s one of the reasons we publish this document — to remind you, than $46 million. and to remind ourselves, of the important work we do together and the difference we make. As President & CEO of Vancouver Foundation, I am pleased to provide you with this edition of The Results of Your Generosity for 2012. Thank you for your support and encouragement. ” Faye Wightman President & CEO Vancouver Foundation April 2013 Results of Your Generosity 2012 | I 2012 By the Numbers These comprise: In 2012, Vancouver Foundation helped donors establish 71 new funds (compared with 62 the year before). We now manage almost 800 Agency and Designated Funds* 1,500 funds with assets totaling more than 475 million Donor Advised Funds* $ 200 Community Impact and 814 Field of Interest Funds* In 2012, Vancouver Foundation These comprise: and our donors made more than 4,000 2,100 Grants directed by donors grants, totaling more than million 375 $ Grants decided by Advisory Committees 46 to registered charities across Canada 1,525 Distributions to charities $ Since 1943, Vancouver Foundation has received almost 918 million in donations, $ and given out more than 917 million in grants and distributions (while currently $ maintaining 814 million in assets — that’s the power of endowment at work). * Unaudited numbers. For a full description of our funds, see the Table of Contents for the Fund Type sections. II | ancouver Foundation Year in Review 2 Contents Vancouver Foundation Priorities 5 Youth Homelessness Initiative 5 Connections and Engagement 7 Our Granting Programs 11 Book of Opportunities Donors 11 Community Impact Funds 11 Field of Interest Funds 12 Field of Interest Granting Highlights 14 Animal Welfare 14 Arts and Culture 16 Children, Youth and Families 18 Education 20 Environment 22 Health and Medical Education/Research 24 Health and Social Development 26 Youth Philanthropy Council 28 Disability Supports for Employment 30 Donor Advised Funds 32 Designated Funds 37 Agency Endowment Funds 39 Legacy Giving 46 Results of Your Generosity 2012 | 1 Year in Review If 2011 was “a year of discovery” for Vancouver Foundation, then 2012 was the year we put our knowledge into action. It was a year of making connections and partnerships; a year of initiating change; when we applied learnings from projects of the previous 12 months, and in the process, changed the direction of our organization. Setting Foundation Priorities Youth Homelessness Initiative Youth homelessness continued to be a priority for the Foundation, with particular attention to where we could make the most impact. Our Youth Homelessness Initiative focuses on those youth most vulnerable to homelessness. In the Vancouver Foundation Priorities section of this book, (see pages 5-6), you will find an overview of the Initiative and a summary of the work we did in this area in 2012. Connections and Engagement Our priority-setting initiative, which began with community consultations in 2011, continued to drive our activities in 2012 with the release of our report, Connections and Engagement: A Survey of metro Vancouver. The release of the survey results and discussion of potential solutions created a storm of media and public interest. It was as if we had tapped into a collective community nerve bringing the issue of isolation and disconnection in Vancouver out of the shadows and into the light. Many BC residents recognized the importance of strengthening neighbourhood and cross-cultural connections as a way of dealing with personal isolation. We saw our existing Neighbourhood Small Grants program as an ideal vehicle to address these issues and have begun looking at opportunities to expand the program throughout metro Vancouver over the next five years. We report our 2012 Connections and Engagement work in more detail in the Priorities section (see pages 7-10), including an overview of public engagement and granting activities in this area. In addition to our priority work, here are a few project highlights and milestones Vancouver Foundation achieved during 2012: Vancouver Foundation among first charities in Canada to be accredited It’s estimated there are more than 161,000 registered charities and non-profit organizations in Canada, with more than 20,000 in BC alone. In 2012, Vancouver Foundation was one of the first charities in Canada to be accredited under new national standards for non-profit organizations. The Foundation was awarded the distinction by Imagine Canada, the national organizing body for Canadian charities, under its new Standards Program. The voluntary program offers accreditation, via a third-party peer review process, to charities and non-profits that can demonstrate excellence in five key areas: board governance; financial accountability and transparency; ethical fundraising; staff management; and volunteer involvement. 2 | ancouver Foundation Greenest City Fund Community Causes Environmental awareness was another important Community Causes are a series of information sessions theme for the Foundation in 2012. organized by the Foundation to heighten awareness about various issues of concern in the community. We signed an agreement with the City of Vancouver Typically, a small group of concerned citizens are to establish the Greenest City Fund. The goal of this invited to a presentation on a particular field of interest. four-year, $2 million fund is to help make Vancouver the Through a site-tour and discussion, participants greenest city in the world by 2020. learn what Vancouver Foundation is doing to make a difference in that area, and how they can help. In the first year of the program, 150 community-led green projects were supported for a total of $538,000. In 2012, a successful event featured discussions of Those projects included: helping families connect Connections and Engagement and the Neighbourhood to nature near their home; making small Vancouver Small Grants program in December at South Vancouver businesses more energy efficient; holding bike skills Neighbourhood House. To find out more about courses for low-income individuals; and creating Community Causes, contact Kristin Helgason at a sustainable, community-supported fishery for 604-629-5186. Vancouver. 2012 Matching Program The news release and a complete list of projects are available in the news section of our website at: Vancouver Foundation’s Matching Gift program gives www.vancouverfoundation.ca/whatsnew donors the chance to do even more good. Through the generosity of anonymous donors, we are able to offer a Youth Engagement special incentive to support specific programs. A group of 25 youth from across metro Vancouver, We will match, dollar-for-dollar, gifts of $1,000 or more including several members of our Youth Philanthropy to a program — even two for one in some cases — thus Council, planned and hosted a summit for immigrant multiplying the impact of the gift. and refugee youth in Vancouver in October 2011. Out of that summit came the Fresh Voices from Long In 2012, Vancouver Foundation had a very successful Journeys Youth Advisory Team – a group of immigrant Matching Gift program, in which 38 funds across our and refugee youth who hosted an inspiring series Fields of Interest received matching grants worth of presentations and dialogues in 2012. During the almost $365,000. This additional money allows us to dialogues, they discussed how youth can influence increase grants and, in some cases, approve grants that (or have a stronger voice) on policy issues that impact might otherwise be turned down due to lack of funds.