TELUS Vancouver Community Board gives $200,000 to nonprofits to aid in COVID-19 response

14 charities across the Lower Mainland and Fraser Valley receiving emergency relief grants

VANCOUVER, British Columbia, April 21, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) --  Today, the TELUS Vancouver Community Board announced it is directing $200,000 in grants to local, grassroots charities across the Lower Mainland and Fraser Valley to support organizations responding to the COVID-19 pandemic, and is committing another $600,000 for a total of $800,000 to be given out in 2020. TELUS and its 13 Canadian Community Boards have a longstanding history of being there for our local customers and communities in the face of adversity.

“In these unprecedented times, the value that our charitable sector provides our communities is more crucial than ever. As the charities and nonprofits across the country work to rapidly pivot their programs, these funds are crucial to enable the delivery of resources to those who need it most,” said Christina Anthony, Board Chair of the TELUS Vancouver Community Board. “TELUS Community Boards have empowered local community leaders who know the needs in their communities best with the authority to make funding decisions that will have the greatest impact on the lives of their neighbours, and we are proud to support vital community work during this crisis.”

The 14 grassroots organizations receiving emergency funding to support COVID relief from the TELUS Vancouver Community Board are:

• Abbotsford Hospice Society - to support a children and youth grief program
• African Stages Association - to support the African Stages Digital Literacy Project
• Aunt Leah’s Place - to support virtual crisis counselling for marginalized youth
• Avalon Women’s Centres -  to provide virtual counselling and support to women living with domestic abuse and violence
• Atira Women’s Resource Centre - to provide virtual counselling and support to women living with domestic abuse and violence
• BeaYOUtiful Foundation - to support the development of a virtual program
• Dan’s Legacy Foundation - to support indigenous youth counselling services
• District of West Vancouver - to support the emergency crisis response
• Hollyburn Family Services Society - to keep the facilities operational
• Pacific Assistance Dogs Society (PADS) - to create a virtual youth community placement program
• Southlands Therapeutic Riding Society - for the creation of an emergency facility fund
• Vancouver Adaptive Snow Sports - to create a digital tutoring program
• Vancouver Urban Ministries  - to provide iPads to low-income families to enable distance learning
• Young Entrepreneur Leadership Launchpad (YELL) - to support the creation of a virtual school program

Since 2005, TELUS’ 13 Canadian Community Boards have given $75 million to local, grassroots charities that help vulnerable kids gain access to the technology, health and educational resources that give them the opportunity to thrive in our increasingly digital world.