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Community Foundation and RBC announce grants to local youth

Submitted Battlefords and District Community Foundation and RBC Foundation are providing grants to two area projects that will be led by youth. The Dekker Centre Young People’s Theatre Ensemble will receive $15,000.
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Submitted

Battlefords and District Community Foundation and RBC Foundation are providing grants to two area projects that will be led by youth. The Dekker Centre Young People’s Theatre Ensemble will receive $15,000. The Battlefords Family Health Centre Community Garden Healthy Living Project 2020 will receive $7,500.

The Dekker Centre Young People’s Theatre Ensemble will recruit a group that will work together on a collective creation. A collective creation is a piece of theatre created as a group based on a topic of social concern, or urgent local need. 

“The Dekker Centre is absolutely thrilled to be a chosen recipient of the RBC Future Launch Community Grant,” says Kali Weber, general manager of the Dekker Centre for the Performing Arts. “With the funds, we will be creating the Dekker Centre Young People’s Theatre Ensemble – a program that has been planned for several years. The funding from the Future Launch Grant is helping us make this dream, a reality.”

The Battlefords Family Health Centre Community Garden Healthy Living project is all about growing healthy food.

“Youth leaders are involved in the development and maintenance of the garden sites, as well as planning, preparation and delivery of weekly events,” says Rose Favel of Battle River Treaty 6 Health Centre. “The RBC grant will support the development of the youth leaders who play an integral part of the project.”

As part of the RBC Future Launch Community Challenge, grants like these ones are being made to youth-led projects in 150 small and medium sized communities across Canada. The goal of the program is to shift the power to young leaders making positive social or environmental change in their communities, while gaining valuable skills and experience.

“Young people are not future leaders – they are leading social and environmental change right now. We are honoured to play a role in the bold change that youth are leading across the country through this national initiative with RBC,” says Andrew Chunilall, CEO of Community Foundations of Canada.

“We at RBC believe that our communities are transformed by the power, vision, and potential of youth,” shares RBC Regional Vice President Annette Sabourin. “We also know it takes dedicated partners like the Community Foundations of Canada and grant recipients The Dekker Centre Young People’s Theatre Ensemble and The Battlefords Family Health Centre Community Garden Healthy Living Project to help make our communities more vibrant places to live and experience.”

Both projects will give youth leaders the chance to plan, implement and evaluate the activities they think will contribute to positive change in our communities. The projects focus on physical and mental health, creative development, skill development and environmental awareness.

Battlefords and District Community Foundation currently holds 30 funds that contribute to a range of interests from the arts and health care to post-secondary scholarships and recreation. BDCF will distribute close to $50,000 in community grants and scholarships this year. Participating in the RBC Future Launch Community Challenge builds on the community foundation’s long-time support of youth and youth leadership.

The RBC Future Launch Community Challenge is hosted by Community Foundations of Canada and participating community foundations and is made possible thanks to a $5 million donation from RBC Foundation. It is part of RBC Future Launch, a commitment by RBC and the RBC Foundation to empower Canadian youth for the jobs of tomorrow. Over the next 10 years, RBC Future Launch is dedicating $500 million to help young people access meaningful employment through practical work experience, skills development opportunities, networking solutions and mental well-being supports and services.