Twenty-five organisations supporting causes in Mid Canterbury have benefitted from the Advance Ashburton’s latest grants round.
Executive officer Carolyn Clough said the recipients were chosen from 40 applications. They altogether received $286,666.10, and ranged from smaller grants such as $750 for a Mid Canterbury Federation of Women’s Institute knitting project to $35,000 for Ashburton Youth CafeCharitable Trust’s BASE Youth Centre’s operational costs.
Clough said the foundation had distributed more than $7 million to purpose groups and people in Mid Canterbury in its 21-year history.
Grants are made from funds earned through invested monies which are received as donations from groups and individuals, and bequests.
“As a 21-year-old community foundation, we have really come of age,” Clough said.
“We focus our granting around three priority areas – our young people, the health and wellbeing of our community, and cultural sustainability,” Clough said.
Today the foundation has more than $15m in funds under management.
Besides grants, it supports programmes on an ongoing basis, such as the Mid Canterbury literacy programme Boost.
Other large grant recipients from the latest grant round included Mid Canterbury Youth Charitable Trust – $30,000 to run the Mid Canterbury Boxing Academy, Hakatere Marae Komiti -$25,000 for operational costs, Digital Waitaha Charitable Trust – $23,000 to run online wellbeing, and safety, scam and fraud prevention programmes, Ashburton Cancer Society Support Group – $21,654.50 for painting the roof and exterior of the Cancer Society building, Methven Care Trust – $20,688 for building an aged care facility in Methven and Society of St Vincent de Paul Ashburton – $20,000 for its St Peter’s Anglican church project.
- For those wishing to give to Advance Ashburton Community Foundation go to advanceashburton.org.nz/howto-make-a-donation, call into their office at Level 2, Somerset House, 161 Burnett St, phone 307-5902 or email [email protected]. nz
