Ottawa, ON – On Thursday, Compassionate Ottawa (CO) announced its receipt of $88,020.80 through the Community Services Recovery Fund (CSRF), which is a one-time $400 million investment from the Government of Canada to support community service organizations, including charities, non-profits and Indigenous governing bodies, as they adapt and modernize their organizations.
This funding has allowed Compassionate Ottawa to hire staff to implement recommendations from a 2022 community consultation that indicated a need to adapt ways of working post-COVID-19 with underserved groups to build a more compassionate community, especially around end-of-life issues, including grief. This staff will also build CO’s capacity to form new collaborations, develop an increasingly diverse volunteer base, and update resource materials used in workshops and facilitated conversations as part of its core public education mandate.
This collaborative 14-month-project, which will work alongside underserved groups, will ensure Compassionate Ottawa’s approach as an inclusive and accessible organization, embracing the needs of diverse volunteers and community members. By adapting to joint activity design and delivery, the quality and reach of CO’s public education content will have more impact, and CO will build its capacity for experience with equity-deserving groups. Additionally, CO’s volunteer team will have been renewed, better reflecting the growing diversity of Ottawa’s population and providing more wisdom on how best to show genuine compassion.
Compassionate Ottawa is a movement that builds the capacity of the citizens of Ottawa to be more capable and confident of helping themselves, their families and their communities to live well and to die and grieve well. To learn more, please visit our website at: https://compassionateottawa.ca/.
The Government of Canada is delivering the Community Services Recovery Fund through three National Funders – Canadian Red Cross, Community Foundations of Canada, and United Way Centraide Canada. The National Funders are distributing funding to eligible community service organizations, including charities, non-profits, and Indigenous governing bodies, providing services in communities across Canada.
“The projects supported by the Government of Canada through the Community Services Recovery Fund demonstrate that we are a caring and compassionate society that values the well-being of all its members. It is heartening to see the compassion and empathy of our citizens as they give back to those in need. Projects like that of Compassionate Ottawa are a testament to the power of our collective action and our ability to come together to make a positive difference in the world. I am confident that together we can make a meaningful impact on the lives of those in Ottawa.”
– Jenna Sudds, Minister of Families, Children and Social Development