Beginning in January 2022, the work of making childhood dreams easier will get a boost from the Anglican Foundation of Canada (AFC) thanks to a $15,000 grant to the Home Again Furniture Bank.
“We are so grateful for this grant,” says Maureen Lymburner, Director of Development, Home Again, “because we will be able to provide beds to children and youth who have been sleeping on floors, sofas, air mattresses or other makeshift beds.” Lymburner says too many families and youth-headed households on the Northeast Avalon are living without basic furnishings, including beds.
The grant was awarded in November as part of AFC’s Say Yes! to Kids campaign and Request for Proposals (RFPs), which was the largest one-time investment in youth-focused ministry the Canadian church has seen. Seventy-nine projects received a total of $470,000 in funding, pushing AFC’s 2021 grant total to the $1 Million milestone.
“We were so pleased to be able to support Home Again for the second year in a row,” says Dr. Scott Brubacher, AFC’s Executive Director. “It was particularly meaningful because of the way the people of Newfoundland supported our Say Yes! to Kids campaign.” Last spring, Newfoundlanders joined the movement to grow a brighter future for young people by raising nearly $12,000.
“A gift of $5,000 from the Anglican Charitable Foundation for Children was matched by another gift of $5,000 from the Diocese of Central Newfoundland,” says Brubacher. A team effort championed by loyal AFC supporters in Eastern Newfoundland raised another $1,700. “This was AFC’s first community-based peer-to-peer fundraising campaign,” says Brubacher, “and we would not have been able to make our goal, and say yes to so many worthwhile projects, without that incredible generosity.”
“We are closing in on two years since the onset of the pandemic,” says Archbishop Linda Nicholls, Primate of the Anglican Church of Canada and Chair, AFC, “and we know our churches continue to face challenges. But the entire Board feels so energized by our capacity to fund these innovative, missional projects and to support Canadian Anglicans in their vision for an engaged, compassionate church. There are creative, visionary projects from across the country here and we are praying for all of them.”
This year AFC will step up its commitment to young people across Canada yet again with an even more ambitious plan to fund youth-focused ministry and outreach. “Our hope is that Say Yes! to Kids 2022 will be both empowering and energizing,” says Brubacher, “enabling our churches to grow sustainable revenue streams for youth programs, while connecting them with other churches across Canada, as well as diocesan and national ministries.”
Michelle Hauser, AFC’s Development and Communications Consultant says, “Any Anglican parish in Canada with a vision for outreach to young people is eligible to apply to form a fundraising team and campaign alongside like-minded parishes nationwide from April 1 to June 30.” Hauser says teams will be able to set their own fundraising goals, and they will receive support with communications, case development, and training from AFC throughout the campaign. “Teams will also benefit from an AFC-led leadership giving campaign that will boost their efforts, including matching gifts.”
Those who wish to learn more about Say Yes! to Kids should visit anglicanfoundation.org/say-yes-to-kids to register for an upcoming webinar and download AFC’s campaign FAQs sheet. “I also encourage anyone who has questions to reach out to me directly,” says Hauser, who can be reached at:
[email protected].
