Do you have a brilliant idea to improve your neighbourhood and bring people together? The Burnaby Neighbourhood House may have some money for you through the annual small grants program.
“We are looking for anything that gets people together that builds connections in the community (or) gives people pride in doing something meaningful for their community,” said Branka Vlasic, the grants program coordinator.
Last year, Vlasic received more than 100 applications. There were a lot of barbecue, block parties, multicultural dinners, educational workshops and gardening projects. (See sidebar for more examples.)
The Vancouver Foundation funds the project, and the grants range from $50 to $500. To qualify, applicants must be in pairs but not live at the same address. Only Burnaby residents qualify, and the project must take place in Burnaby. The application deadline is April 4. Vlasic is hosting info sessions in March to help people apply. For details on the times and dates, go to burnabynh.ca. To apply online, go to neighbourhoodsmallgrants.ca.
Examples of past grant projects:
- Living room art: A Burnaby home was transformed into an open art gallery, with music, storytelling, dance and drawing.
- Burnaby Inclusion Festival: An annual event that started as a mural project and morphed into a festival with food and children’s activities.
- Outdoor library boxes: Two women organized a project to create four new outdoor library boxes, where people can exchange and donate books.
- Culture chats: An ongoing reading club featuring books with multicultural themes. The group meets at the McGill library branch.
