In this morning’s interview Manda Aufochs Gillespie, Executive Director of the Cortes Island Community Foundation, discusses a fund called Communitas and explains how the Cortes Foundation doubled the money for this year’s Grant in Aid.
Continue reading Communitas: how the Cortes Foundation doubled the money for this year’s Grants in Aid
By Abby Luciano, North Shore News, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter
More than two dozen students from Carson Graham Secondary gave up their beds and embraced the cold last Thursday to raise funds for youth experiencing homelessness.
The 25 students, along with four adults, slept outside overnight at the North Vancouver high school, collecting nearly $10,000 to go towards Covenant House Vancouver, a non-profit that helps end youth homelessness.
The students launched a campaign on the Covenant House website, where parents, friends and other supporters could make donations for the cause.
Continue reading North Vancouver students sleep outside to raise nearly $10K for homeless youth
The Cortes Community Foundation has once again shown how invaluable resource it is to the community. Regional Director Mark Vonesch has a budget of about $25,000 a year for Cortes Island’s Grants in Aid. When the time to disburse the funds arrives, he normally receives requests for far more money than is available. This year was no exception; however, thanks to the Cortes Island Community Foundation, nearly all these requests will be met.
Continue reading Cortes Foundation made up shortfall for 2026 Grants in AidThe Quadra Island Recreation Society is asking the community for their input into what the Quadra Community Centre and a new pavilion at Blenkin Park should be used for.
Marc Doll, Vice Chair of the Society, explained: “We started by looking at one desperate need for the community centre, which was the lack of a proper kitchen facility. We came up with some solutions, but the price tag came in higher than what we wanted for a very small improvement. So, conversations continued, and we decided that we really had to look at the bigger picture. The Quadra Island Community Centre has been serving the community since 1985, and we felt it was time to go back to the public and ask: what do we need this building to do for the next 20 years?”
“At the same time, we’ve been working with the SRD for the last number of years to get an outdoor pavilion in Blenkin Park. The funding is in place, and we’re looking to start building as early as 2026.”
Continue reading What does the community want from the Quadra Community Centre and the new Blenkin Park Pavilion?
In the first half of this episode, Cortes Island Academy students Elsie, Lacey, and Elias discuss the housing situation on Cortes, from three different angles. This includes tiny homes, Rainbow Ridge, the Seniors Village, and interviews with five different locals, as well as their own stories and observations on the topic. Travel with them as they learn about the challenges of finding housing on Cortes, and the creative solutions that are emerging to try and solve the issue.
In part two, Nathaniel Maki interviews Margaret Verschuur and Fawn Baron from the Deathcare Collective, and discusses the importance of having a healthy culture and communication around the topic of death and dying.
Continue reading Teen Takeover on Housing, the Death Care Collective & Podcasting
