Foundations relish their roles
Okanagan Edge Staff - Sep 21, 2020 - Get Involved

Photo: Contributed
(L to R): Aaron McRann, Leanne Hammond and David Knapp lead the Okanagan’s three community foundations.

The Okanagan’s three community foundations are celebrating the role they play this month.

The B.C. government proclaimed September as Community Foundations month, recognizing the role the foundations play. The Central Okanagan Foundation, the Community Foundation of the Okanagan Similkameen and the Community Foundation of the North Okanagan are all thankful for the love from the province.

“This is an annual acknowledgement of the role community foundations play in elevating philanthropy and helping to sustain hundreds of organizations and worthy projects in the province,” Central Okanagan Foundation executive director David Knapp said in a press release, “and we are always happy to collaborate with our colleagues in the Okanagan Valley.”

South Okanagan Similkameen Foundation executive director Aaron McRann pointed out that charitable foundations like theirs were—and still are—critical during a global pandemic.

“As a community foundation, our job is to help our donors help our communities,” McRann said. “That job has always been a privilege, but 2020 has really made us realize just how fortunate we are to be in a position to help. We mobilized resources very quickly and leveraged provincial and national relationships to bring significant funding to the communities we serve.”


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