OLDS — Town council has approved $106,102 in Family and Community Support Services (FCSS) grants this year.
They've also authorized administrative staff to allocate another $5,000 for projects that may come forward during the year. However, those applying for that money can only obtain up to $2,000 each.
The Boys and Girls Club of Olds and Area received more than half of that pool of $106,102. They received $55,000.
Other groups receiving grants from that pool were the Chinook’s Edge School Division family school wellness, $21,666; Youth Empowerment and Support (YES) program to foster positive mental health, $15,130; HOPE (The Conversation Has To Happen), an annual conference on suicide and depression, $5,916; Olds & District Hospice Society, $4,000; Mountain View Moccasin House Friendship Centre, $3,540; and Mountain View Emergency Shelter Society, $850.
Coun. Mary Anne Overwater questioned why the Boys and Girls Club received such a big share of the grants.
Community facilitator Heather Dixon said there are several reasons.
For one thing, the club has hired a worker whose job is to focus on youth programming and support for parents.
"That’s a brand new position to them as well that we will see great benefit from in our community,” Dixon said.
She pointed out that the club also offers daycare, an early childhood program, before and after school programming.
Dixon also said that earlier, the Boys and Girls Club obtained funding for food hampers for people who need them.
“They went the extra step in the fall and have connected with schools and if a teacher felt that a student was in need, they connected them with the Boys and Girls Club and they are still doing these food hampers for families in our community as well,” she said.
Dixon also noted that a couple of years ago, the Boys and Girls Club moved to a larger location which has resulted in larger bills for utilities.
She pointed out that Boys and Girls Club representatives have helped out in many community activities, including Olds Fashioned Christmas and Canada Day activities.
Dixon and community services director Doug Wagstaff said the Boys and Girls Club almost always receives the largest share of FCSS grants.
Coun. Heather Ryan expressed concern that the ceiling of up to $2,000 for grants out of the extra $5,000 pool was too high because if two groups each asked for the entire allowable grant, there’d only be $1,000 left for others.
She suggested amending a motion on the matter to limit the amount of each grant to $1,000.
Wagstaff said staff set the ceiling at $2,000 because that would enable them to hand out money up to that figure without having to go to council with that ask. And when they researched previous grants, most were well within that figure.
Several councillors agreed with that thought, noting there’s no guarantee all groups applying will ask for the entire limit.
So in the end, the $2,000 limit for each grant in that $5,000 pool of money remained.
