$250k grant helps Y recover from COVID impacts

Grant was awarded last fall and was designed to help non-profit organizations impacted by the pandemic with operational costs

(l-r): MPP Ross Romano, YMCA Fundraising & Marketing Manager, Natasha Collett and YMCA CEO, Bob Burns.Photo Supplied

NEWS RELEASE
SAULT STE. MARIE YMCA
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On Friday, MPP Ross Romano met with the team at the Sault Ste. Marie YMCA to hear more about the impact that a $250,000 Community Building Fund grant that it received from the Government of Ontario and the Ontario Trillium Foundation (OTF) had over the last year. The grant was awarded last fall and was designed to help non-profit organizations impacted by the pandemic with operational costs.

“I would like to congratulate our YMCA on their success navigating the last two and a half years. This $250,000 Ontario Trillium Foundation - Community Building Fund has been instrumental in providing the YMCA with additional funding for operations during the COVID-19 pandemic,” said Ross Romano, MPP for Sault Ste. Marie. “Our government will continue to provide supports like the OTF Community Building Fund to help local business and not-for-profits grow and prosper.”

Funds from the Community Building Fund – Operating grant allowed the YMCA to continue operating its facilities during a challenging period, and it helped with some staffing costs. In addition, the grant helped the YMCA purchase essential cleaning and sanitizing equipment as well as developing new fundraising and marketing strategies to help support long-term operations.

“Of the numerous YMCAs across Canada, our local YMCA is among the top three nationwide in membership retention today versus pre-COVID,” said Robert Burns, CEO, Sault Ste. Marie YMCA. “We believe the additional housekeeping and cleaning staff, along with the necessary cleaning equipment, allowed our members and staff to feel more comfortable and safe when entering our building following lockdowns. Thanks to this funding we’ll be able to continue this high level of pandemic cleaning well into the future.”

“The additional investment into new, state-of-the-art fundraising software has also allowed us to upgrade our donation process which will allow us greater capabilities in the future with respect to campaign planning, donor engagement, and overall external communications,” added Burns. “This will allow us to expand and grow programming to meet the ever changing needs of our community.”

For more information on the Sault Ste. Marie YMCA and its programs, please visit www.ssmymca.ca, Facebook or Instagram @ssmymca.

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