2025 Annual Report and Celebrating 70 Years of Impact

When I was a child, I remember attending Foundation events with my family and feeling a profound sense of pride and responsibility. Even then, I understood that the Lawson Foundation was something special. It wasn’t just an organization; it was a living expression of our family’s belief that we all have a role to play in building a better future for children and youth.

This year, as I became the first 5th Generation Chair of the Foundation, I found myself reflecting on just how remarkable that journey has been. 

Seventy years ago, in 1956, my great-great-grandfather, Ray Lawson, established the Foundation. Since then, each generation has contributed its own ideas, energy, and perspective while remaining grounded in a shared commitment to philanthropy. The result is not simply a legacy passed down, but a responsibility shared across generations.

One of the things that I value the most about the Lawson Foundation is that every generation has been invited to help shape its future. As young people, many of my siblings, cousins, and I cared deeply about environmental issues and wanted to see the Foundation engage in that work. Those conversations ultimately helped spark what is now our Youth Climate & Nature Leadership impact area. It is a reminder that when we create space for new voices, we create space for new possibilities.

That willingness to learn, adapt, and evolve has been part of the Foundation’s story from the beginning. Over seventy years, we have grown our understanding of what creates meaningful change. We have learned from communities, partners, researchers, and young people themselves. We have embraced new ideas, strengthened old ones, and continually challenged ourselves to do better.

What has never changed is the trust that sits at the heart of our work. Trust in one another as family members and stewards. Trust in our board, committees, advisors, and staff. Trust in the organizations, leaders, and communities we support. That trust has allowed the Foundation to grow, to take risks, and to pursue opportunities that can create lasting impact.

As we look ahead, I feel an overwhelming sense of gratitude for everyone who has helped build this Foundation over the past seventy years. Generations of members, dedicated staff, thoughtful advisors and community partners have shaped what the Foundation is today.

I also feel excited about what comes next.

Our refreshed strategic direction reflects both where we have come from and where we hope to go. It builds on decades of learning while challenging us to continue innovating, listening, and responding to the needs of children and youth in a changing world.

The Foundation’s story is still being written. I am honoured to help steward it into its next chapter, and I am optimistic about what we can accomplish together in the years ahead.

Celebrating 70 Years of Impact | Cathy Taylor, President & CEO

The Lawson Foundation is one of the oldest and most established family foundations in Canada. As we mark our seventieth anniversary, it is a privilege to celebrate this milestone alongside Robin in her first year as Board Chair and the first 5th Gen to hold this role.

As we reflect on and honour our roots, it is amazing to reflect on how innovative, creative and generous the Foundation has been in every era, evolving over time to respond to community needs as they emerge.

What strikes me most is not simply the longevity of the Foundation, but the depth of its contribution. Across generations, the Foundation has helped shape fields, advance research, influence public policy, strengthen organizations and support leaders whose work continues to benefit children, youth and communities across Canada.

Looking across our history, many principles remain evident today: investing in evidence and research, translating learning into practice, building connections, supporting emerging leaders, and investing in organizations for the long term. These lessons continue to shape how we work today, through our granting, convening, impact investing and advocacy efforts.

Our refreshed strategic direction, launched at last year’s AGM, is rooted in the lessons, relationships, and experiences that have shaped the Foundation over the past seventy years. It reflects both the values that have guided our work and a renewed focus on where we believe we can have an impact. Guided by what we’ve learned along the way, we are sharpening our focus around the areas where our resources, relationships and expertise can drive meaningful and lasting change. We remain unwavering in our commitment to the healthy development and wellbeing of children and youth, and to the communities that support and surround them.

2025 was a year of momentum. We continued to build on the Foundation’s long history of investing in communities and strengthening partnerships. We made strategic investments that allow the Foundation to grant more to communities, brought people together through convenings to share learnings and collaborate, and launched new initiatives designed to create impact well beyond the communities and organizations directly involved.

As you read this report, I hope you will see what we see: a Foundation built on a remarkable history and equipped with the relationships, knowledge, and tools to make a meaningful contribution in the years ahead.

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