Cambridge, Ontario — The Honourable Gary Goodyear, Member of Parliament for Cambridge & North Dumfries, today encouraged non-profit organizations that work to improve the lives of Canada’s seniors to apply for federal funding.
“We know how important it is to provide meaningful programs and activities for our seniors,” said Minister Goodyear. “This is just one more way that we can help support non-profit organizations in their goal to engage seniors in the community.”
This funding will enable organizations to renovate facilities and replace equipment used to deliver seniors’ programs and activities. Up to $25,000 in funding is available per project.
The 2010–2011 call for proposals under the Capital Assistance component of the New Horizons for Seniors Program was offiically launched on August 30, 2010, by the Honourable Diane Ablonczy, Minister of State (Seniors).
“Our government recognizes the ongoing contributions that seniors make to our communities, workplaces and society,” said Minister of State Ablonczy. “That is why we are working hard to ensure that our policies, programs and services continue to provide opportunities for seniors to improve their well-being and quality of life.”
The application deadline is October 8, 2010, in all provinces and territories except Quebec. In Quebec, the call for proposals for Capital Assistance and Community Participation and Leadership funding opened May 3, 2010, and closed on September 17, 2010. For more information about all calls for proposals, please visit the following website: www.hrsdc.gc.ca/seniors.
Earlier this year, Minister of State Ablonczy announced the approval of 626 Capital Assistance projects that were submitted as part of the 2009–2010 call. More than $8.5 million in grant funding was awarded to the recipients.
Since its beginning, the New Horizons for Seniors Program has funded over 7 000 projects across Canada, helping seniors to use their leadership, energy and skills to benefit our communities.
Through Canada’s Economic Action Plan, the federal government continues to protect Canadians, including seniors, in difficult times by implementing several key measures:
- Providing $2.3 billion annually in tax relief to seniors and pensioners through measures such as income splitting and increasing the Age Credit;
- Helping older workers and their families by investing an additional $60 million over three years in the Targeted Initiative for Older Workers, and by expanding the number of eligible communities to include older workers in small cities;
- Investing $13 million over three years to help raise awareness of elder abuse and assist seniors in dealing with this difficult issue;
- Providing Canadians, mainly people over the age of 60, with almost $70 billion annually through Canada’s income support system and public pensions, including the Canada Pension Plan and the Old Age Security program; and
- Supporting positive and active aging through the collaborative Age-Friendly Communities Initiative, Canada’s Physical Activity Guide to Healthy Active Living for Older Adults, and falls prevention initiatives.
Backgrounder
New Horizons for Seniors Program
Across Canada, the New Horizons for Seniors Program (NHSP) helps ensure that seniors are able to actively contribute to and benefit from the quality of life in their communities.
Building on the success of the NHSP, Budget 2010 invested an additional $5 million per year in the Program, bringing the total overall budget to $40 million. This additional funding will support projects that promote volunteering among seniors or initiatives that aim to increase awareness of financial abuse. Plans to implement the new funding are currently underway.
The Program offers three types of funding to organizations:
- Community Participation and Leadership funding (up to $25,000 in funding per project). This funding supports community-based projects across Canada. The projects encourage seniors to continue to play an important role in their communities by helping those in need, providing leadership, and sharing their knowledge and skills with others.
- Capital Assistance funding (up to $25,000 in funding per project). This funding helps non profit organizations that need to upgrade facilities or equipment used for existing seniors’ programs and activities. It enables seniors to continue to lead active lives by participating in existing programs and activities in their communities.
- Elder Abuse Awareness funding (up to $250,000 in funding per project annually, over a maximum of three years). This funding helps non-profit organizations and coalitions at a national or regional level to raise awareness of the abuse of seniors. Through this funding, new educational and awareness resources about elder abuse will be available to improve the quality of life, safety and security of seniors.
