RCRG - Blog - A Year to Forget, A Holiday Season to Remember
Did you know?
More than 100 young leaders have graduated from the Youth Now program.
Each year, over 100 non-profit professionals attend our training opportunities.
Over two dozen non-profit organizations have participated in the Youth Now program.
The CCRR provides nearly 400 child care referrals per year.
On average, the CCRR hosts 30 workshops and training courses each year.
Every year, over 500 child care providers and parents attend CCRR training opportunities.
Every year, RCRG completes over 3,000 grocery orders for local seniors.
Nearly 300 seniors make use of our Better at Home services.
Our volunteer drivers complete more than 1,200 trips annually.
At least 350 people per year find a volunteer position using our Volunteer Match program.
Close to 500 volunteers support RCRG’s programs and services.
Volunteers contribute nearly 23,000 hours to our organization each year.
Each holiday season, the Richmond Christmas Fund helps more than 2,200 low-income residents.
Every year, the Christmas Fund provides over 600 children with toys, books, and sports equipment.
The Richmond Christmas Fund was first started by Ethel Tibbits, in the 1930s.
The number of Neighbourhood Small Grants we’ve awarded has increased every year since 2014.
Block parties are the most popular type of Neighbourhood Small Grant project.
Every year, the Richmond Women’s Resource Centre serves over 7,300 local women.
The Richmond Women’s Resource Centre currently offers 16 programs and services.
Nearly 60 volunteers support the Richmond Women’s Resource Centre, contributing nearly 2,500 hours per year.
Richmond is home to over 350 registered charities, all of which rely on volunteer support.
There are nearly 13 million volunteers across Canada.
International Volunteer Day is celebrated throughout the world on December 5.
There are 35 volunteer centres in British Columbia.
In 2016, the Foundation awarded 10 grants to non-profit organizations, worth a combined $59,000.
The Foundation manages $6 million in 60 Forever Funds, returning, on average, CPI plus 4%.
Between 2020 and 2022, the Foundation distributed $656,000 in grants, scholarships, charitable disbursements, and Emergency Community Support Funds.
Foundation activities result in the enhancement of our community and residents’ sense of belonging.
ROCA has raised over $21,000 for local charities.
ROCA has performed its Elementary School Concert Series to over 8,000 students.
ROCA provides mentoring and life changing opportunities for aspiring musicians.
The Richmond Arts Coalition was founded in November of 2005.
RAC co-produces the ArtRich exhibition every two years!
RAC highlights Richmond's arts events in a monthly email.
The Richmond Music School is the oldest not-for-profit music school in Richmond.
The Richmond Music School offers affordable music lessons through its diverse programming.
Our students performed 40 hours of music to welcome the Olympic athletes to the 2010 Olympic Games.
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RCRG Blog

A Year to Forget, A Holiday Season to Remember

Published January 21, 2021

Yes, it's January. Yes, the holiday season has come and gone. But here at RCRG, the Richmond Christmas Fund is still fresh on our minds.

One thing we do every year, to put an exclamation mark on the program, is create a document highlighting the Christmas Fund's impact, and the people who made it possible.

Well, some of the people. There simply isn't enough space to list every donor and every volunteer, but know that, if you supported the Christmas Fund in 2020 - by giving money, by giving toys, by giving time - you made a difference. There is a family in your community who directly benefitted from your generosity. For them, the holidays were brighter because of you.

The document is a large file, so it might take a second to download. In the meantime, here's a brief spoiler: in 2020, the Richmond Christmas Fund helped 2,866 of our neighbours in need, including 849 children, 319 youth, and 347 seniors.

Most importantly, we were able to run the program safely, following public health protocols every step of the way. Indeed, some of the changes we made led to new efficiencies, allowing us to create a better experience for our clients.
 
These changes will remain part of the Christmas Fund going forward - a legacy from a uniquely challenging year, when we had to get creative to keep the program going.
 
Of course, all the creativity in the world wouldn't have mattered if the community weren't there for us. But the support we received was simply remarkable. That's our other takeaway from 2020: Richmond, collectively and individually, really does care. And, in turn, Richmond gives. We see it every year with the Christmas Fund. We saw it more than ever in 2020.
 
So, one last time, thank you. Here's the story of your impact:

2020 Richmond Christmas Fund Year in Review