On Friday, MPP Graydon Smith and local dignitaries met with Hospice Huntsville staff and volunteers to hear more about the impact of a $38,300 Resilient Communities Fund grant that the Hospice received earlier this year.
“I’m thrilled that Hospice Huntsville has received this much deserved grant,’ said Graydon Smith, MPP Parry Sound-Muskoka. “This funding is crucial in helping the organization recover from the challenges imposed by the COVID-19 pandemic. Compassionate and accessible end of life care is integral to building resilient and healthy communities. We’re fortunate to have an organization like Hospice Huntsville active in our community and I’m very pleased that this grant will enable it to strengthen its programing and support services.”
Funds from the grant were used to help Hospice Huntsville with the costs of implementing safe programs adapted to reduce social isolation and supporting accessible, compassionate, end of life needs. The grant enabled it to introduce legacy projects for its Algonquin Grace residents and family members and by developing “Hug Boxes” for children and youth visiting loved ones at hospice. Funds were also used to help with a new enhanced website, a video encompassing an overview of the organization’s programs and services, health and safety supplies for hospice visiting volunteers, laptop computers to allow members of the community to participate in virtual grief and bereavement support programming and additional marketing to ensure that the community knows Hospice Huntsville is here to support them safely in their time of need, including publication of new information material for community members.
During the application of the grant, COVID-19 had impacted Hospice Huntsville operations, resulting in a reduction in fundraising revenues typically raised through event-based fundraising. These funds help support all Hospice Huntsville programs, including the five-bed residential hospice, the Visiting Volunteer Program, and the grief and bereavement programs. Hospice Huntsville’s support programs were also impacted. Due to the nature of the Visiting Volunteer and the grief and bereavement programs, they had been held in group or one-to-one settings of a more intimate nature requiring close contact. These programs were suspended during the pandemic. Hospice services are an essential facet of our local health care system.
It is through the Resilient Communities Fund grant that Hospice Huntsville was able to “come together while staying apart” and address this gap in services to strengthen their capacity to operate within the given restrictions. For more information about Hospice Huntsville, please visit www.hospicehuntsville.com
The Ontario Trillium Foundation (OTF) mission is to build healthy and vibrant communities across Ontario. As an agency of the Government of Ontario, and one of Canada’s leading granting foundations, last year, OTF invested nearly $209M into 2,042 community projects and partnerships, which included funding for the Government of Ontario’s Community Building Fund. Since 2020, OTF has supported Ontario’s economic recovery by helping non-profit organizations rebuild and recover from the impacts of Covid-19. Visit www.otf.ca to learn more.
