A couple of local non-profit organizations have received some financial aid from the Amherstburg Community Foundation (ACF).The Society of St. Vincent de Paul have received a cheque for $2,000 from the ACF.
Local branch president Sharron Bombardier said the donation stemmed from a roundtable discussion presented a few months ago by Councillor Patricia Simone and ended with the donation made earlier this month.
“We just raised the issue of cost to individual members about police clearances,” said Bombardier. “For us, as a society, we are required to have police checks (for members) every three years.”
With proceeds raised going towards the society and the support they give to individuals and families in need in the community, there is little left to aid members with the costs of police clearances. Bombardier says members have to the $25 cost pay out-of-pocket and that can be difficult as many local society members are seniors and on fixed incomes.
“Some of us had to be fingerprinted,” added Bombardier. “The costs were getting difficult for individual members to cover.”
Those additional fingerprinting costs can range from $50-$75, she added.
Costs of police clearances can vary depending on municipality, she noted, pointing out there are no costs in areas policed by the OPP but in areas policed by Windsor or LaSalle, there are costs for the members to get the clearances. They are required to get police clearances due to the fact volunteers deal regularly with vulnerable people. Bombardier said they turned to the Amherstburg Community Foundation to see if they could help and the ACF agreed. She said they are very grateful for the donation.
“We were happy to have it,” she said. “I was delighted.”
ACF president Richard Peddie said the board talked about the importance of the Society of St. Vincent de Paul and the impact it has on the community and agreed to pay the $2,000 out of miscellaneous funds the board had. Peddie said volunteers with the society put in roughly 5,700 hours annually and “it was an easy decision” to help them.
Peddie also noted he wrote a personal cheque to the Holiday Beach Migration Observatory(HBMO) for $1,200. He recalled going with his father to Holiday Beach with his father to watch bird banding and he is still interested in it, so he agreed to help the HBMO with a donation.
The ACF also is continuing to encourage the public to vote on the ten other initiatives that local non-profits are requesting funding for. The foundation has collected about $35,000 from community builders but overall requests totalled $73,000. People wishing to make donations to the foundation to increase the pot of cash that will be divided among the causes chosen are welcome to reach out to the foundation through their website at www.amherstburgfoundation.org.
Peddie indicated the ten non-profits add a lot to the community and how the public votes will help the board decide who to donate to and how much can be donated.
“All the causes have a lot of merit,” he said.
People can vote through the ACF’s website by clicking on the “Believe in Amherstburg Vote Today!” tab in the upper right corner of the screen. The public can vote daily for as many of the ten organizations as they choose. Organizations looking for funding include the Amherstburg Food and Fellowship Mission, Amherstburg Community Services, Amherstburg Fort Malden Horticultural Society, the Fighting Island Boxing Club, Wings Avian Rehab, Firehorse Leadership Organization, The House Youth Centre, Natural Pathways Learning Centre, the Park House Museum and the local chapter of Safe Families Canada.
“We’ll keep the voting going as long as people are interested,” said Peddie