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Community Partnerships Initiative
In addition to its role as the primary fundraising organization for the St. Joseph's at Fleming long term care facility, the St. Joseph's Care Foundation dedicates a portion of its annual budget towards funding community based, life-long healthy aging projects supporting the citizens of Peterborough City, County and Surrounding area. The following list represents projects funded to date:
| September 2006 |
Peterborough County City Health Unit & Community Partners |
Falls Prevention |
$10,000.00 |
| December 2006 |
Learning Disabilities Association of Peterborough |
Resource Library |
$5,000.00 |
| December 2006 |
YMCA |
Specialized Equipment for Seniors |
$5,000.00 |
| July 2006 |
Activity Haven |
Physically Accessible Picnic Tables and Computer Equipment |
$5,100.00 |
| July 2006 |
Camp Kawartha |
“Learning on the Edge” |
$5,000.00 |
| July 2006 |
Ontario Audio Library Service |
Home Reading Programme |
$3,950.00 |
| June 2005 |
Community Living Peterborough |
Murphy Virtual Reality Room |
$12,800.00 |
| October 2005 |
Community Care Peterborough |
Personal Distress Alarms |
$5,000.00 |
| February 2006 |
Canadian Hearing Society |
Hearing Help Classes |
$8,150.00 |
| November 2007 |
PRHC |
Argon Laser System |
$42,000.00 |
| March 2007 |
Canadian Hearing Society |
Keyboard and mouse for laptop |
$77.00 |
| July 2007 |
Learning Disabilities Association of Peterborough |
Teaching Resources |
$2,199.00 |
| 2007 |
VON- Peterborough, Victoria, Haliburton Branch |
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$12,045.00 |
| February 2007 |
Peterborough County- City Health Unit |
Falls Prevention Program |
$3,546.00 |
| 2007 |
Canadian Cancer Society of Ontario |
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$4,648.00 |
| June 2007 |
Camp Kawartha Incorporated |
"Learning from the Edge" Program |
$5,000.00 |
| July 2007 |
Down Syndrome Association of Peterborough |
Resources for Educational Project |
$5,309.00 |
| April 2008 |
School for Young Moms |
Equipment for babies |
$3,000.00 |
| May 2008 |
Lakefield Primary Health Care |
Building a clinic |
$10,000.00 |
| April 2008 |
Peterborough Historical Society |
Amplifier/ Speaker System |
$1,700.00 |
| June 2008 |
Victorian Order of Nurses |
Shelter Health Clinic Suplies |
$2,000.00 |
| June 2008 |
PRHC |
Ambulation aids and transfer belts |
$2,000.00 |
| June 2008 |
Learning Disabilities Association of Peterborough |
Computer for SOAR-Pilot Project |
$1,500.00 |
| May 2008 |
Big Brother's & Big Sister's of Peterborough |
"GO GIRLS" Program Materials |
$2,500.00 |
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Peterborough County City Health Unit & Community Partners Falls Prevention Public Service Announcements
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$10,000.00 |
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Funding was provided for the production of Public Service Announcements intended to increase awareness about the benefits of regular exercise in order to maintain mobility and prevent falls among older adults. This initiative is being coordinated by a large network of older adult community representatives, community agencies that provide care for older adults, and representatives from the local business community.
As the leading cause of death due to injury among adults over the age of 65, falls are considered to be the biggest safety issue facing Canadian seniors. Providing older adults with practical information on how to prevent and predict them, the announcements promote one of the Foundation’s most central beliefs — the importance of staying active regardless of age.
Created using the expertise of local exercise and health experts, the radio and television PSAs feature testimonials from local older adults illustrating the benefits of regular exercise and the connection between exercising and maintaining independence. The messages promote activities that are accessible, easily learned, and can be done by older adults with a disability. |
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Learning Disabilities Association of Peterborough Resource Library
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$5,000.00 |
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$5,000.00 in Community Partnerships funding has been granted to the Learning Disabilities Association of Peterborough (LDAP) to help restock their Resource Library. Devastated when the LDAP’s offices were destroyed by flood in 2004, the Library was once worth more than $80,000.00.
Offering one-to-one tutoring, training and support, the LDAP offers direct assistance to children, youth and adults with identified learning disabilities, and/or Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder. Now, thanks in part to the money provided by the St. Joseph’s Care Foundation, their library is beginning to bulge again with the approximately $15,000.00 worth of books, DVDs, journals and software replaced to date. |
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Peterborough YMCA Specialized Exercise Equipment for Seniors
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$5,000.00 |
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The Foundation has chosen the YMCA of Peterborough to be a recipient of Community Partnerships Initiative funding in the amount of $5,000.00. The money is intended for the purchase of specialized equipment used to support fitness and exercise programs and classes geared toward seniors. Promoting life-long healthy aging in our community, the specialized equipment, including a $2,090.00 water wheelchair, will allow older adults to participate in both land and aquatic fitness classes designed specifically to meet their ability levels. |
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Activity Haven
Physically Accessible Picnic Tables and Computer Equipment
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$5,100.00 |
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Providing activities and supports to seniors 50 years of age and older in a safe and caring environment, Activity Haven has received $5,100.00 in capital funding to purchase new, physically accessible picnic tables designed to accommodate those in need of a walker or cane.
Operating as a recreation centre for more than 30 years, Activity Haven holds weekly BBQs all summer long at their Barnardo Street location. These popular social events help seniors develop a support network comprised of lasting friendships while keeping them involved and active in the community.
The funds will also be used to purchase a much needed new computer that will eventually house the organization’s membership database, an initiative that will not only allow them to provide improved services, but involve their senior volunteers in new technology. |
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Camp Kawartha
"Learning on the Edge" |
$5,000.00 |
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$5,000.00 in partnership funding has been committed to Camp Kawartha’s “Learning on the Edge” program. Teaching self awareness through challenge, the Foundation’s gift will be put towards the construction of a safe and effective new high ropes course on the Camp’s Clear Lake property.
Built more than a dozen years ago, the camp’s existing course will eventually be unable to safely support the more than 3,500 youth and adults who make use of these rope elements annually. Funds from the Foundation will help build a course designed to be accessible to a broad complement of community members. Anchored to poles instead of trees, the new course can be used by all ages and abilities, including seniors and physically or cognitively challenged individuals. |
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Home Audio Services Library
Home Reading Programme |
$3,950.00 |
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The Ontario Audio Library Service (OALS) provides elementary, secondary and post-secondary students with print disabilities with the tools they need to succeed academically. In support of their efforts, the Foundation has committed $3,950.00 in capital funding, allowing OALS to augment their home reading programme with three additional laptop computers, microphones and software.
OALS provides recorded textbooks to students identified with print disabilities including visual impairments, learning disabilities, motor skills impairments, or any disability which precludes the use of regular printed books. Students who previously struggled to complete their reading and classroom assignments are able to access their textbooks via computer or playback machine in a digital format that offers superior sound quality, human voice narration, and book navigation capabilities. In order to qualify for these materials, the student must be enrolled at a publicly-funded Ontario school. The materials are provided at no cost to either the student or their school.
In addition to the many volunteers who read for one to several hours per week at one of three OALS reading sites, OALS has a small team of home readers. These volunteers record on laptop computers provided by OALS, each reading an average of ten hours per week. Home readers, with their ability to read during evenings, weekends, and holidays, are essential to OALS being able to meet its tight production timelines. Maintaining and expanding the home reading programme is vital to OALS’s ability to meet the needs of its student clients. |
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Canadian Hearing Society
Hearing Help Classes |
$8,150.00 |
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Hard of hearing older adults and adults with physical challenges will soon have an opportunity to learn a step-by-step approach to coping with hearing loss thanks to the St. Joseph’s Care Foundation.
The Foundation has committed $8,150.00 in funding for the Canadian Hearing Society’s new Hearing Help Classes, a program designed to provide information about the physical and technical aspects of hearing loss, and improve communications skills in social settings. Topics will include learning about the ear and how it functions, and understanding hearing loss and its psycho-social impact.
Participants will also learn to develop their own coping strategies to deal with a variety of listening situations, and to teach their friends and families about hearing loss. In doing so, they will be able to remain active and involved in their family and social life, an important step in preventing the isolation experienced by many hard of hearing older adults. |
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Community Living Peterborough
Murphy Virtual Reality Room |
$12,800.00 |
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Chosen as the first project to be funded under the Foundation’s Community Partnerships Initiative, in June 2005 Community Living Peterborough received $12,800.00 in capital funding to purchase the equipment necessary to set up a Murphy Virtual Reality Room .
A powerful, experiential, learning tool, the technology is designed to engage individuals of all ages who lack verbal skills, are autistic, or are withdrawn, and provide a fun and safe environment in which to learn new skills. The system captures an individual’s image and immerses that individual into a scene projected on a wall, capturing and displaying any motion made as a response to something happening on the screen. Possible virtual scenes include work or home environments, or even a volleyball court, zoo or restaurant.
Community Living Peterborough is a non-profit organization that provides supports and services that promote the personal growth and community participation of individuals with intellectual disabilities and their families. The organization supports over 300 adults and 150 children throughout Peterborough County and believes that all people should live in a state of dignity, share in all elements of living in their community, and have the opportunity to participate effectively.
As a dynamic and innovative project, this initiative is a natural fit with the Foundation’s mandate, promoting life-long healthy aging and enriching the lives of everyone in our community. |
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Community Care Peterborough
Personal Distress Alarms |
$5,000.00 |
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Responding to an urgent call for assistance, in October 2005 the St. Joseph’s Care Foundation provided Community Care Peterborough with $5,000.00 in capital funding to purchase 19 personal distress alarms desperately needed by our community’s vulnerable seniors and adults.
Worn around the neck or wrist, the personal distress alarms are loaned to area seniors and adults with physical disabilities who are living on low or fixed incomes, providing an essential safety net to individuals striving to remain safe and independent in their own homes. The only cost to the client is a nominal monitoring fee which is often waived when need is demonstrated.
Community Care is a non-profit, charitable organization that offers a range of practical support services designed to help the frail elderly and people with physical disabilities accomplish the tasks of everyday living in Peterborough County and City. Through a network of nine service delivery sites and a team of 21 staff, 3,795 clients received service primarily from a team of over 990 volunteers who gave 69,801 hours of service to the organization in 2004/2005.
The project responds to the Foundation’s mandate to promote life-long healthy aging for everyone by providing safety, independence and peace of mind regardless of income or means. |
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| School For Young Moms |
$3,000.00 |
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Funding was provided to purchase necessary equipment for the program. The equipment should help the Program with its many services. Some services include: Prenatal support and education, childcare, peer mentoring, high school education courses, counselling and workshops. All of these services help build young moms into supportive and caring mothers.
This Program is run through the Peterborough Resource Centre. The School For Young Moms teaches how to change diapers, feed and comfort babies, with the primary goal of supporting healthy parent and child relationships. It is not just for parents, it also has a child care room provided for infants. |
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| Lakefield Primary Health Care |
$10,000.00 |
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$10,000.00 was given to Lakefield Primary Health Care to assist in building the new Health Care Centre. The Centre should promote health in the Lakefield area with its multidimensional services provided under one roof.
It is a non-profit corporation that began in 2003 raising money and awareness to the needs of its community. There has been a decrease in practitioners in the Lakefield area, but the population itself continues to age, which increases the need for accessible primary care. The building will have Physicians, Nurse Practitioners, Registered Nurses and Registered Practical Nurses. As well Social Workers, counselling, nutritional counselling, and Pharmacists will be seen in the building. To further convenience chiropody, physiotherapy, audiology, orthotics, imaging and laboratory specimen collection will be readily available. All of these services should promote health in the Lakefield area with the construction of this accessible one-story building. |
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| Learning Disabilities Association of Peterborough |
$1,500.00 |
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St. Joseph's Care Foundation granted the learning Disabilities Association of Peterborough $1,500.00. The grant was for a computer needed for the “SoAR” program ran through the Association. SoAR helps students with learning disabilities to develop tools necessary for success in school and life. The Association has completed two pilot projects which both proved to be successful. The target group is for learning challenged and/or disabled children in grades 7,8, and 9. This group has been targeted to ensure the transition into high school is smooth and comfortable for these children. Since not all families can afford a program like SoAR the Learning Disabilities Association of Peterborough has worked hard to raise funds so that the families will not miss out. |
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| Peterborough Historical Society |
$1,700.00 |
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The Peterborough Historical Society was established in 1896 which hosts monthly meetings with guest speakers presenting historical topics. $1,700.00 was given to this non-profit society in order to get an amplifier and speaker system. The system was needed to enhance its presentations. The senior population is particularly engaged by the presentations, so having the speaker system will increase the volume of the guest speakers voice and thus make for a more enjoyable and audible presentation. |
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| Peterborough Regional Health Centre (PRHC) |
$2,000.00 |
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PRCH has been serving an area of more than 300,000 and has developed a new program for elders. The program will last one year and is called “ The Hospital Elder Life Program” (HELP). The goals are to maintain physical and cognitive functioning throughout hospitalization, maintain hydration and normal sleep patterns, reduce risk of falls, maximize independence at discharge, and prevent unplanned readmission to the hospital. The program is targeted to the senior population and will involve volunteers and staff improving the quality of life for many patients.
St. Joseph's Care Foundation granted PRHC $2,000.00 towards this beneficial project. The grant given will go towards ambulation aids and transfer belts. These items not only preserve dignity, they also increase healing by assisting the patient to sit and stand. These devices also protect staff and volunteers from workplace injuries that are often associated with the constant transferring of patients (i.e. back problems and pain). |
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| Victorian Order of Nurses (VON) |
$2,000.00 |
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The VON has been operating since 1897 and is the leader in community based home care. The VON requested funding for support on a project geared towards Peterborough’s homeless population. The project needs supplies in order to affectively care and assess its clientele. A Nurse Practitioner joins with an outreach nurse and sees clients on an appointment only basis. There is a significant gap in the health care provided to the homeless population, and with their increased environmental exposures they are at a risk for many health problems.
St. Joseph's Care Foundation looked at the application and granted the VON $2,000.00. The grant will assist the VON in purchasing an examining table and light necessary for examinations. With proper diagnoses and resources made available to the homeless population there should be an increase in the overall health and wellbeing of those who seek help. |
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For more information on funding opportunities and processes, see Becoming a Partner.
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