HIP YOUTH TO YOUTH EXPERIENCE
THE AYALIK FUND 2021 - 2022
The Ayalik fund was established in 2015, and since then it has sent over 100 Northern youth on challenging outdoor adventures. Opportunities like this give youth a chance to grow and achieve their full potential. Several clubs within D7080 have come together with the objective of raising enough money to sponsor at least two youths on an upcoming adventure. With the help of the District’s Indigenous Resource Committee, they are approaching clubs within D7080 in search of donations. The total cost to sponsor one youth is roughly $7500; two youth would require $15,000. A donation of $500 across 30 clubs in the district would meet the fundraising objective. We encourage you to watch this video from the Ayalik Fund, and then email Burlington North Rotarian Craig Macpherson to arrange a presentation about the program for your club.
WATER FIRST 2020 - Present
In September 2020 Rotary International awarded a Global Grant of $80,000USD ($115,000CAD) to the cluster of Guelph Rotary Clubs, Oakville, Brampton and Toronto as signatories for partnership with the Water First internship program, a 15 month internship training program for young Indigenous men and women.
Rotary Indigenous Scholarship 2016 - Present
In the fall of 2016, the Rotary Club of Oakville Trafalgar established the Rotary Indigenous Scholarship at the University of Sudbury. The scholarship assists Indigenous students in meeting their financial needs during the course of their full-time studies.
Art for Aid 2020
Beginning in July 2020, various Rotary Clubs in Oakville, Mississauga, Burlington, Kitchener, Milton and Guelph began collecting art and creative activity supplies, which went to 19 northern First Nation communities.
Student Exchange - Central Peel Secondary School 2018 & 2019
Working with Experiences Canada, and under the direction of teacher Heather McPhail, the Interact club at Central Peel Secondary School (CPSS) worked to arrange two student exchanges with Indigenous high schools. The students from Central Peel visited the Dene Nation of Northwest Territories (2018) and the Nuxalk Nation of Bella Coola, BC (2019).
Medicine Wheel Garden in Bravery Park Orangeville 2018 - 2019
The Dufferin County Cultural Resource Circle (DCCRC), with the help of donors such as the Rotary Club of Orangeville Highlands and the Rotary Club of Orangeville, constructed a medicine wheel garden in Orangeville’s Bravery Park. The garden was completed in November 2018; the grand opening took place in May 2019.
First Nation Hockey Equipment Drive 2014 - 2019
For seven years, the Rotary Clubs of Etobicoke and Palgrave have partnered to organize a hockey equipment drive in districts 7070 and 7080. The equipment was sent to First Nations communities in Ontario and Manitoba to provide First Nations young people with the opportunity to play hockey.
Better Hearing in Education for Northern Youth 2015 - 2018
Better Hearing in Education for Northern Youth (BHENY - pronounced Bennie) was the product of an amazing juxtaposition of Rotarian Dr. Lynne McCurdy’s commitment to both her profession as an Audiologist and her desire as a member of RC Guelph’s Indigenous Awareness Committee to make a difference in the lives of Canada’s hearing impaired Inuit children in Nunavut. The goal of the BHENY project was to address hearing loss in youth, beginning with 13 underserviced communities in the Qikiqtani region of Nunavut.
OneXOne First Nations School Breakfast Program 2015 - 2016
Collectively, with coordination from 7080’s Community Indigenous Resource Committee for Learning & Education (CIRCLE), 12 Clubs from Rotary District 7080 have donated enough funds in support of the OneXOne Foundation’s First Nations School Breakfast Program (FNSBP) to receive a maximum matching grant from Rotary District 7080.
Siemens Laptop Donations 2017 & 2018
In 2015, Siemens Canada created Corporations for Community Connections or C4CC, a program that donated lightly used laptops from Siemens to various charities. Volunteers from the Rotary Club of Brampton joined Siemens volunteers at 2 workshops to clean, make a final test and package the machines for delivery. 300 laptops were delivered to Indigenous communities across Canada.