Colwood council has approved just shy of $40,000 in grants-in-aid funding for community groups in 2023, with 19 of 21 applications receiving enough support from council to receive a grant.
In a unanimous decision Monday (Feb. 27), council approved $39,700 in grants, leaving $5,400 of budgeted grant money for potential disbursement to applications received later in the year.
The largest single grant approved for 2023 is $10,800 for the Arts and Culture Colwood Society, which is inclusive of $5,000 council approved for the organization in January. According to a report from staff, the grant funds will be used by the society to produce several arts and culture events in the city this year, including a poetry station, artists in residence, plein air painting, and the In Sight Festival.
The Vancouver Island South Film and Media Commission received the second-largest grant of $3,900, which will be used to help maintain an office assistant position, described by the commission as being “critical” to the organization’s ability to undertake its mission to promote film locations, crew, talent, and businesses in the Capital Regional District.
At $3,100, the Big Brothers Big Sisters of Victoria Capital Region received the third-largest grant, which the organization will use to help run its programs across the CRD, including two projects in Colwood – Community Mentoring and the B You: Health Bodies, Healthy Minds programs.
The organization said it is also working to bring back its in school mentoring program for Kindergarten to Grade 5 in Colwood.
Royal Canadian Legion Branch 91 received two separate grants. $2,400 was awarded specifically for the annual Remembrance Day ceremony, and $2,100 was awarded for its annual Christmas service.
Rounding out the list of successful grant applications are the Capital Bike Society, $1,500, Colwood Garden Society, $2,000, Dunsmuir School HipHop, $500, Greater Victoria Volunteer Society, $1,000, Intermunicipal Advisory Committee on Disability Issues, $1,100, Open Gate Church, $1,500, Peninsula Streams Society, $1,500, QCHAT Support Association, $1,900, Royal Bay Secondary School’s Dry Grad, $1,000, The Sarah Beckett Memorial Run, $700, Take a Hike Foundation, $1,400, Victoria Brain Injury Society, $800, WesCom Medi-Lend Society, $1,700, and Wishart Elementary School, $800.