Close to $300,000 in grant money has been awarded to 20 non-profit organizations serving the Shuswap. 

The money was distributed through the Shuswap Community Foundation (SCF) and its semi-annual 2024 grant program, to "organizations providing essential support, programs and services to Shuswap residents," said the SCF in a July 31 media release. 

"This year, 20 charities will receive grants for projects ranging from lifesaving first aid equipment and medical travel to camp drainage repairs, building an imagination library, animal spay/neuter programs and Search & Rescue Boat upgrades," said the SCF.  "Our grants committee was impressed by the local organizations' dedication to addressing the community's evolving needs and prioritizing the most pressing issues."

The SCF highlighted three of the grant recipients including Hope Air, Rise Up Indigenous Wellness Society and Shuswap Paws Rescue Society. 

Hope Air assists Canadians in needing to travel by air for medical appointments and treatments. The organization received grant money for medical travel arrangements for low-income patients in the Shuswap. 

 "Shuswap Community Foundation's contribution will help us provide 528 no-cost travel arrangements (127 flights, 154 accommodations, 204 meals and 43 rides) for low-income patients in your communities in 2024," said Hope Air grants manager Heather Dougherty.

Started in 2022, the Rise Up Indigenous Wellness Society provides holistic programs designed to empower Indigenous people on their path to wellness.The grant money will go towards Rise Up's food programs and transition needs by contributing to the purchase of a new fridge and van.

"The new van will enable us to handle more food deliveries, meeting the increasing demand from our growing food security list," said Rise Up executive director Launa Payne. "This will ensure that more households receive the fresh produce they need, reducing food insecurity in the Shuswap and Salmon Arm area."

Local animal rescue, the Shuswap Paws Rescue Society, received grant money for its tag-and-release program for cats impacted by the 2023 wildfire. Many "relocated to safer environments, often sustaining injuries and living feral lifestyles." The tag-and-release program involves vet checks and relocating cats to safe colonies. "The initiative will reduce the risk of contagious diseases and decrease the feral cat population," said the SCF. 

The following is the full list of recipients of the August 2024 SCF grant:

• Adams Lake Indian Band - On the Land ALIB youth camps;

• Canoe Senior Citizens Association - kitchen renovation;

• Eagle Bay Community Association - EBCA Community Hall Stage Project;

• Eagle Valley Community Support Society - Early Years Indigenous Education Project, Phase 2;

• Falkland & District Community Church and Fellowship Society - AED/defibrillator;

• First United Church - Improving access to healthy foods, Wednesday Community Lunch;

• Girl Guides of Canada, BC Council - GGC Camp Tillicum external drainage repairs;

• Hope Air - Medical travel arrangements for low-income patients of Shuswap communities;

• Kamloops Symphony Society - 2024/25 Salmon Arm Sundays series;

• Literacy Alliance of the Shuswap Society - Shuswap Prosperity Fund Imagination Library, and for Imagination Library and Unplug & Play 2025;

• Okanagan Humane Society - Companion animal spay/neuter and medical care;

• Rise Up Indigenous Wellness Society - Feeding our Future program;

• Shuswap Area Family Emergency Society - Bridging Services to Empower the Vulnerable Project, service bridging worker;

• Shuswap Children's Association - Friends & Leisure Youth (FLY) Recreation Program;

• Shuswap District Arts Council - Salmon Arm Arts Centre Prosperity Fund Initiative;

• Shuswap Food Action Society - Inclusive and Sustainable Program Growth;

• Shuswap Lifeboat Society – Boathouse placement and completion;

• Shuswap Paws Rescue Society - 2024 Feline Tag and release;

• Shuswap Volunteer Search and Rescue Society - Shuswap SAR rescue boat upgrade;

• Sicamous and District Seniors Centre Society - Sicamous Seniors Centre security system installation.

To learn how SCF works with donors to support charities in the Shuswap, contact executive director Roger Parenteau at 250-832-5428 or email ed@shuswapfoundation.ca.