Each year, at our Annual General Meeting in April, our President gives us a summary that wraps up important events and productive connections at the Foundation.
Message from the President
Looking back as I celebrate my one year anniversary as President of the foundation, I’m surprised at how far we have come in such a short period of time. We have added two new board members—Carson Noftle and Stacey Corriveau and had one board member retire before the end of his term—Bam Sidhu, whose optimism and enthusiasm is missed at board meetings. Last March we hired a new Executive Director, Susan McAlevy, a Mission resident who is returning to work in Abbotsford after a nine year absence honing her skills as a fund raiser and communicator at SFU and the BC Arthritis Society.
Last month, myself and several members of the board and staff participated in the 2011 National Community Foundations of Canada conference which was held in Vancouver and were inspired by keynote speakers like Bill Clinton and Governor General David Johnston, and a slate of experts who shared their knowledge on storytelling, mission investing, grant making and the changing role of community foundations.
May and June are grad months and many of our board members have been participating in award ceremonies as they give our scholarships and bursaries on behalf of our generous award donors who this year were responsible for a record 331 awards totalling $257,600 for graduating students in Abbotsford. We are just beginning our community granting process which will be completed in the fall as we provide over $68,000 in grants to community organizations making a difference in Abbotsford.
Lastly, we are preparing for our planning day at the end of the month when we will lay the groundwork for what we hope to accomplish in the next one to three years. This is an exciting time for your community foundation as it builds towards reaching the milestone of $10 million in endowment funds and looks to expand its role as a leader in community philanthropy.
Bev Brown