On May 22, 2019, Regional Council approved more than $2.6 million in funding for community programs through the Halton Region Community Investment Fund (HRCIF). The HRCIF provides funding to non-profit social service and community health initiatives that support the health, safety and well-being of Halton residents.
“The HRCIF has grown in both size and impact, helping enhance the health, safety and well-being of our residents,” said Halton Regional Chair Gary Carr. “The fund has tripled since 2012 to more than $2.6 million today.”
HRCIF funding is provided in one-year or multi-year grants and supports programs that address mental health; maintain housing and prevent homelessness; strengthen services to older adults, children and youth; improve food security; enhance safety and well-being; and support vulnerable residents.
The following 26 new programs will receive funding from the HRCIF in 2019:
- Acclaim Health and Community Care Services to purchase kitchen equipment.
- Acclaim Health and Community Care Services to provide free, accessible arts and yoga programming to address loneliness and isolation of low income older adults.
- ArtHouse for Children and Youth to provide free extra-curricular arts programs for low income children aged seven to 12 to build life skills and form positive relationships.
- Burlington Baptist Church to support two, 15-week lunch and activity programs that provide vulnerable older adults with opportunities for social interaction with peers.
- Canadian Mental Health Association Halton Region Branch to provide free walk-in counselling.
- Canadian Mental Health Association Halton Region Branch to support one-on-one counselling, crisis intervention and group programming at the Salvation Army Lighthouse Shelter.
- Capability Support Services to purchase a backup generator to power 24-hour medical and assistive devices used by residents.
- Catholic Family Services of Hamilton to support case management and cleaning costs for adults who live in extreme self-neglect and help stabilize their housing.
- CNIB to help blind and partially-sighted older adults adapt to their sight loss.
- Elizabeth Fry Society of Peel-Halton to provide programming to educate girls about the risks of sexual exploitation and support girls who have been exploited to prevent future abuse.
- Food4Kids Halton to support a larger location that can store bulk food and has more space to accommodate volunteers that pack healthy foods for vulnerable children to take home on the weekends.
- Georgetown Bread Basket to support monthly cooking classes and prepare take-home meals for clients.
- Halton Children’s Aid Society to provide a pilot program for youth aged 18 to 24 leaving the child welfare system to improve outcomes related to education, employment and/or training.
- Halton Food for Thought to purchase meal cards for at-risk secondary school students so they can buy healthy meals at school cafeterias.
- Halton Fresh Food Box to support the implementation of an online ordering system for food security organizations to purchase healthy, local fruits and vegetables.
- Milton Transitional Housing to provide subsidized transitional accommodation and supportive counselling for up to two years for people in housing crisis.
- Oak Park Neighbourhood Centre to improve service delivery by assessing the needs of food bank users across several Oakville-based food banks.
- Partnership West Family Support Network (operating as Burlington Food Bank) to purchase a walk-in freezer that will increase protein-rich foods offered to individuals and families in need.
- Quality Continuous Improvement Centre for Community Education and Training to help newcomer women from various backgrounds develop employment skills, enhance social belonging and connect to needed services.
- Radius Child and Youth Services to support staffing for specialized assessment and treatment programs for children, youth and families who have been affected by abuse and/or neglect.
- Reach Out Centre for Kids (ROCK) to provide staff for onsite mental health, addictions and substance use supports for youth and provide educational information sessions to caregivers.
- Schizophrenia Society of Ontario to train frontline staff at community organizations across Halton in Cognitive Behavioural Therapy related to psychosis.
- St. Christopher’s Anglican Church to support community hub clients with onsite services and referrals to address needs such as food, clothing, parenting and mental health.
- The John Howard Society of Peel-Halton-Dufferin to expand community programming focused on anti-criminal thinking, anger management and positive parenting.
- Thrive Counselling Services Halton Inc. to provide free psychotherapy and community referrals to help individuals, families and couples cope with challenges such as family and marital conflict, and mental health issues.
- Wellspring Birmingham Gilgan House to provide one-on-one peer counselling to adults living with cancer and professional counselling to those in crisis.
In addition to new funding, 29 programs will continue to receive funding as part of their second or third instalment of multi-year grants awarded in 2017 and 2018.
Some of these programs are showcased in Halton Region’s recently released HRCIF Impact Report 2018. The report, now in its second year, profiles seven projects from 2018 that received HRCIF funding and demonstrates HRCIF’s positive impact in the community.
To learn more about the HRCIF, visit halton.ca or call 311.
The Regional Municipality of Halton serves 570,000 residents in the City of Burlington, the Town of Halton Hills, the Town of Milton, and the Town of Oakville. Halton Region is committed to meeting the needs of its residents through the delivery of cost-effective, quality programs and services, including water and wastewater; Regional roads and planning; paramedic services; waste management; public health; social assistance; children’s and seniors’ services; housing services; heritage programs; emergency management and economic development. For more information, call 311 or visit Halton Region’s website at halton.ca.
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