United Way announced on Friday that two Fraser Cascade-based projects addressing poverty, homelessness or helping children aged zero to six to be successful in school will be funded this year.
The largest grant was for The HOPE Project, which came to a total of $11,128. The Hope Project is operated by Hope & Area Transition Society (HATS), a non-profit organization based out of Hope that hosts a hub of services, which supports individuals who are homeless or at risk of homelessness, leading to secure employment and housing.
"We are very excited about the grant money," said HATS Executive Director Gerry Dyble. It will help us keep the doors open, even if it’s only for a partial period of time.”
Another project funded by United Way this year allows Family Parenting Place to offer services on the weekends, so that families who work, have access to early childhood programs.
A third regional project assists with one-time loans and financial counselling for individuals at risk of losing their housing. This project partners Agassiz/Harrison Community Services and HATS with Mennonite Central Committee.
“We are very pleased to be investing in skills based programs that will reduce community costs now and in the future”, said Wayne Green, executive director of United Way. “These grants are only available because of the incredibly generous donors we have here in the Fraser Valley.”
For more information about United Way, go to www.uwfv.bc.ca