During 2010, the Foundation awarded $3.9 million in grants and focused on two major initiatives to ensure our effectiveness: the launch of a new program called Healthy Active Children and an external assessment of the Diabetes Funding Strategy. See the 2010 Summarized Audited Statements.
2010 Grants Awarded totalled $3,913,130 with 73% of grant dollars directed to three strategic programs: Beginning Years (23%), Healthy Active Children (9%), and Diabetes (41%). The Board deferred awarding grants in the Miggsie Lawson program until 2011.
For nearly 20 years, the Foundation has supported a range of projects and research focused on the optimal development of young children during their first years of life. We are inspired by and commend the caregivers, educators and researchers who are dedicated to ensuring the healthy development of our youngest citizens.
Recent new grants awarded include:
- Centre of Excellence for Early Childhood Development for the continuing development, dissemination and use of the Encyclopedia on Early Childhood Development.
- The Founders’ Network to support Dr. Fraser Mustard's work in human development.
- Ontario Coalition for Better Child Care for The Early Years Study 3 report by The Hon. Margaret Norrie McCain, Dr. Fraser Mustard and Kerry McCuaig. The EYS3 is sponsored by a group of Canadian foundations with an interest in a pan-Canadian system that values and cares for its youngest citizens.
- The Phoenix Centre, the new host of The Parenting Partnership (TPP), to support the ongoing roll out of TPP's curriculum to communities and to convert the classic face-to-face and on-line curriculum to an all on-line version for use by individuals as well as communities.
- University of British Columbia - Human Early Partnership (HELP) for the national Early Child Development Monitoring System.
The Foundation is also supporting multi-year projects led by: Psychology Foundation of Canada, Canadian Institute for Advanced Research and Red River College of Applied Arts, Science and Technology.
In 2011-12, we plan to review the Beginning Years program by assessing its impact and learning about emerging trends and priorities in early child development.
Creating a new program is an exciting and ambitious process. The new Healthy Active Children program follows an exploration phase to learn how children benefit from leading healthy active lives and how society will benefit when the overall health of children and families improves. This process has guided the development of the program’s design to ensure our grant dollars have maximum impact.
Three promising multi-year initiatives are being funded to further the program’s intention.
- Active Healthy Kids Canada for the Report Card and its dissemination during 2011-13.
- The Working Together Initiative through PHE Canada to continue the groundbreaking work to explore the potential for social sector and public service innovation in sport and physical activity, including the implementation of additional community-based prototype/pilot projects.
- PHE Canada’s Health Promoting Schools, a Canada-wide initiative, to support a broad spectrum of activities and services within schools and their communities to help children enhance their health and develop to their full potential.
In 2010, the Board engaged Hirji & White Consulting to assess the Diabetes Funding Strategy and provide a 10-year retrospective of the outcomes and impact along with key trends, gaps and emerging priorities in diabetes. The review’s scope considered 33 project grants totalling $4,200,000 for innovative diabetes projects located in communities across Canada and sought advice from Canadian leaders in diabetes. Hirji & White’s comprehensive report characterizes the Foundation’s 10-year investment in diabetes as “punching above its weight”. Based on the report’s analysis of the positive change resulting from our grantees’ work and its recommendations, the Foundation will extend funding for diabetes for a further five years during 2012-16.
During 2010-11, the Foundation will complete pledges to eight diabetes projects and to the Helen and Frances Lawson Chair in Diabetes Research.
Miggsie Lawson
In 2011, the Board resumed granting in the Miggsie Lawson program and approved a $64,000 grant to Children's Health Foundation of London for specialized monitors for high risk infants.
Grants awarded in the Special program support organizations of particular historical interest and opportunities to collaborate with other funders.
New grants include:
- Atkinson Charitable Foundation to support the transfer of the Canadian Index of Wellbeing to its new home at the University of Waterloo.
- Sky Works Charitable Foundation to extend support to strengthen the transition from a project-based to a program-based organization using documentaries to engage communities in social change.
- University of Victoria to share the success and learning of Laichwiltach Family Life Services Society of Campbell River, B.C., a proven community-based model to promote optimal child development.
The Foundation relies on many volunteers to ensure its effectiveness: our dedicated Board of Directors, engaged Members, knowledgeable Committee members, wise Advisors and expert Reviewers. Our loyal staff team – Lynda Swift, Karen Shelstad, and Colleen Montgomery – manages the Foundation with professionalism. In 2011, we recognized two retiring Directors, Tim Gardiner who served for six years, and David Gardiner who served from 2000-11. David was one of the first 4th generation Lawson descendants to join the Board and, during his tenure, served as Board Chair from 2006-09 and chaired several committees. In June 2011, we welcomed two new Directors to the Board, Michelle Chui and Ted Lawson.
2011-12 will mark a milestone when the Foundation celebrates 55 years of philanthropy, The Hon. Ray Lawson’s living legacy to enrich the quality of life in Canada.
It is a privilege to be entrusted with the leadership of The Lawson Foundation.
