Sometimes trying something different can reveal new possibilities and strengthen relationships. A participatory granting pilot at Hamilton Community Foundation aims to achieve just that.
Participatory granting is a form of trust-based philanthropy that shifts decision-making power to those most affected by the funding. It is based on the philosophy that foundations should share power to produce more equitable outcomes.
Data suggests that traditional philanthropy has underfunded historically marginalized communities. For example, a report called Unfunded: Black Communities Overlooked by Canadian Philanthropy found that Black-serving organizations received only 0.7 percent of all grants distributed by community foundations in Canada in 2017 and 2018.
HCF’s participatory granting pilot invites community members to form a granting circle that determines community needs and allocates funds to support capacity-building for equity-deserving community-led organizations. This approach leverages the knowledge and expertise of these organizations to make the most positive impact on the lives and health of their communities.
The pilot targets organizations representing the following communities:
To learn more, visit: hamiltoncommunityfoundation.ca/pgp
Excerpt from 2024 Spring Legacy Newsletter
For too many members of our community, housing is precarious. Some are often one eviction notice away from losing their homes. A new series of grants at Hamilton Community Foundation is supporting frontline organizations to prevent that from happening.
Last year, the Foundation launched SCAFFOLD, a multi-year commitment to affordable housing. The strategy comprises several components, including supporting new construction, keeping affordable units out of the private market and eviction prevention.
Earlier this year, HCF made grants to several local charities working to prevent evictions, including Hamilton Community Legal Clinic, ACORN, Hamilton Housing Help Centre, St. Matthew’s House, Niwasa Kendaaswin Teg, Hamilton Regional Indian Centre, Living Rock, Hamilton Child and Family Supports (formerly Children’s Aid Society of Hamilton), and Catholic Children’s Aid Society of Hamilton.
Eviction prevention is multi-faceted, so supports vary depending on the clients being served.
These organizations provide a broad range of services including: partnering with outreach workers at local shelters to assist in navigating interactions with the Landlord and Tenant Board, connecting seniors with professional cleaners to address hoarding, financial support for youth who are behind on rent, Indigenous food sovereignty programming, and educating tenants on their rights and how to apply to legal support programs.
“These grants respond to the growing need for support considering the housing crisis and increased homelessness risk for folks facing the daily challenges of poverty,” says Rudi Wallace, VP Grants & Community Initiatives. “We’re supporting programs that help people fight unfair evictions and also that deliver direct services to vulnerable tenants. That means fewer people at risk of becoming unhoused.”
Excerpt from 2024 Spring Legacy Newsletter
In a constantly changing world, learning never ends.
A new educational program in rural Flamborough connects seniors to helpful learning opportunities and one another.
The program is facilitated by Flamborough Information & Community Services and targets isolated, vulnerable, financially disadvantaged and disabled seniors. Holding the sessions in proximity to areas where rural seniors live is an important consideration, since many seniors are uncomfortable driving distances and look for program opportunities close to home.
The program fills a gap for rural seniors who do not have easy access to opportunities for learning and social engagement.
An HCF grant supports eight one-hour sessions, held from January to October, at locations throughout the community, and will be offered by local subject matter experts. Planned topics include wills, scams and healthy living.
Excerpt from 2024 Spring Legacy Newsletter
Long wait times for refugee claim hearings often mean asylum seekers do not receive mental health services, despite research indicating that newcomers experience higher rates of serious mental health issues than citizens and people with permanent Immigration status.
Thanks to support from HCF, Hamilton’s Immigrants Working Centre will address this gap with a new program that connects 250 asylum seekers with mental health services.
The organization has operated a successful newcomer mental health program since 2020, supporting over 500 people and playing a vital role in crisis management, settlement counselling and education for newcomers. This is the first time, however, IWC has been able to extend these supports to asylum seekers.
“There’s no other settlement-focused organization providing this service for refugee claimants in Hamilton.”
“The Immigrants Working Centre currently has hundreds of active refugee claimants accessing our services who could benefit from mental health support,” says IWC assistant executive director, Anni Kelly.
Excerpt from 2024 Spring Legacy Newsletter
An afterschool space that is just for youth – this is the proven strategy that BGC Hamilton-Halton is using to help kids in its neighbourhood.
The BGC Youth Centre, supported by a grant from HCF, is designed for youth aged 14 to 24 and provides a safe, welcoming space to explore interests, gain skills, access support and connect to peers, caring adults and the community.
Youth are engaged in developing programs, planning trips and designing a space where they feel welcome.
The site has been open since 2021, but is more important than ever, given how the pandemic has compromised youth social connection, mental health and education. It offers a mix of informal socializing and structured programming five days a week immediately after school and in the summer.
Excerpt from 2024 Spring Legacy Newsletter
Beatrice Kemp spent a career doing good in Hamilton. That commitment continues in the form of a new HCF fund reflecting her passions for helping children and animals.
Beatrice worked for 30 years with Catholic Children’s Aid Society of Hamilton. She served as its executive director and was inspired by the very children the organization served. “Social work became a vocation and protecting children enriched me in ways I never imagined.”
“Having been born and raised in Hamilton I feel an allegiance to our city and so it was a natural fit to establish a fund through Hamilton Community Foundation.”
Her fund, The Bobbles Fund (named after a beloved cat), also supports animals at risk, reflecting Beatrice’s lifelong connection to family pets. “Animals bring out the best in me — certainly my protective and nurturing instincts — but their presence also calms me,” she says.
Beatrice’s commitment to the community made the Foundation a perfect fit for her philanthropy.
Excerpt from Spring 2024 Legacy Newsletter
Ghana Association of Hamilton’s program helps isolated seniors find hope.
When the pandemic hit, Comfort Boateng pressed pause on her once active life. “There was nowhere to go. I’d get up late, then just sit and watch TV until night would come.”
All that changed when she joined the Ghana Association of Hamilton’s Honouring Our Elders program, which provided seniors with a tablet and tech support, virtual fitness classes and information sessions, vouchers to Ghanaian food stores, and transportation from volunteer drivers. Close to 60 seniors participated, with 29 receiving a tablet.
“Now I get up in the morning to get ready for my Zoom exercise class,” Comfort says. “I use WhatsApp to message my grandchildren. I do Bible study with other seniors. It makes you much more active.”
The pandemic has disproportionately affected immigrant seniors, with many experiencing loneliness. Causes include lack of opportunities to socialize, inadequate incomes and limited access to transportation.
Florence Opoku, a frequent mallwalker before the pandemic, attributes her improved mobility and balance to the fitness program. She also recognizes the broader social benefits. “Some of the ladies came from West Africa to visit their children and help with their grandchildren,” she says.
“Isolation from the lockdowns had a great impact on them. The Zoom activities brought us together.”
HCF support came from the Pandemic Response Fund. Grassroots cultural groups often serve communities not typically supported by HCF funding. As part of its goal to increase accessibility to grant opportunities, HCF has recently expanded its outreach to these groups and is working to reduce barriers.
“HCF emailed me, but I didn’t think we would qualify because we aren’t a charity,” says association president Comfort Afari, affectionately known as Mama Cee. She was surprised to learn they could get a fiscal sponsor, and it could be a church. She approached the Church of Pentecost, who agreed to sponsor the program and joined its advisory board.
“We recognize that COVID has affected our elders and wanted them to feel they are an important part of our community,” says Mama Cee. “Leaders from London and Toronto have called me to say, ‘This is amazing. It’s the first of its kind. Tell us how you started it.’”
Excerpt from 2021-2022 Annual Report
Researchers at St. Joseph’s Healthcare Hamilton are hoping lung cancer patients will live longer, healthier lives thanks to an “electronic nose” that uses their breath to tell if cancer has returned after surgery.
Lung cancer is responsible for more deaths in Canada than colorectal, breast and prostate cancer combined. Surgery is the favoured treatment, but recurrence rates are high. Currently, hospitals screen for lung cancer recurrence using expensive, time-consuming, uncomfortable CT scans, which expose patients to risky levels of radiation.
A research grant from HCF’s Community Health, Education and Research Fund is supporting the study of a new method at St. Joseph’s called a liquid biopsy that is less expensive, painless, radiation-free, and can be conducted from the comfort of a patient’s home. Best of all, it may lead to earlier recurrence detection than a CT scan.
If successful, St. Joseph’s would be the first Canadian medical centre to use liquid biopsies to detect lung cancer. The two-year project will continue until summer 2025.
From Fall 2023 Legacy Newsletter
All kids need a chance to play, especially those coming out of domestic violence situations. An Interval House program is connecting vulnerable children and youth to recreational activities in a safe and affordable way.
Last year, the program was offered only to shelter residents. Now, an HCF grant is helping to expand it to all rural and urban Hamilton families who are escaping domestic violence and abusive situations and accessing Interval House services.
When families are experiencing violence, children may not be able to enroll in community-based programs and sports. This can negatively affect their connection with peers as well as their physical, emotional and mental health.
Safety and cost are significant barriers to participation in community activities for these children. The Interval House program ensures affordability through partnerships with recreation organizations and access to equipment and transportation. Partnerships with Hamilton Police Services and the Children’s Aid Society also ease safety concerns.
From Fall 2023 Legacy Newsletter
Two years ago, the first mini-forests took root in Hamilton.
Purposefully designed, mini-forests consist of densely planted native tree species that mimic the complexity of a naturally evolved forest. The reason? To restore biodiversity.
Two recent grants from HCF support the mini-forests project from Green Venture. One supports planting new trees and stewarding existing mini-forests. Another helps fund research to measure growth, soil structure and ecological outcomes.
At the heart of this project is the “Miyawaki method” — named after Japanese botanist Akira Miyawaki — which involves planting native tree species at very high densities. The result, which has been successfully applied all over the world, is a diverse forest that develops over a relatively short period.
By next spring, Green Venture hopes to plant 600 trees at Johnson Tews Park and 100 more across the grounds of Dundas Central Public School. The project also involves education workshops and engagement with students at the school.
Researching the efficacy of the Miyawaki method in Hamilton is also key to Green Venture’s success, since there are no established best practices for mini-forests in Canada yet. Green Venture plans to evaluate its existing mini- forests and other examples in Canada, as well as to conduct research to determine how the community perceives the value of the project.
“Restoring biodiversity is crucial for Hamilton,” says Rudi Wallace, Vice-President of Grants & Community Initiatives. “A greater tree canopy in our community is important and we’re glad to support this environmentally focused project that also engages residents.”
From Fall 2023 Legacy Newsletter
Donations to the Foundation are invested for the long term in public markets and in alternative investments. Investment income is then allocated annually to support granting, community leadership and operations. The summary and charts presented here provide both a financial snapshot and a history of recent activity that underlies the grants and community leadership activities represented in this annual report, made possible by remarkable donors.
Donations to the Foundation are from individuals, corporations and other charities. Donors may contribute to named endowment or flowthrough funds, to the Board-directed Community Fund, or to HCF’s community leadership projects.
The $35.1 million in donations this year is the second highest total in HCF’s history. Annual donations are influenced by the timing of the realization of donations in wills and significant one-time donations like the $27.7 million in donations of property and private equity. As illustrated in Chart 1, annual donations have ranged between $3.2 and $35.1 million over the past eight years. The five-year rolling average of donations ranges from $5.0 million to $13.3 million over the past eight years.
The five-year rolling average number of donations is 1,787 with 2019-20 at 1,853. The number of donations fluctuates based on “in memoriam” donations and the number and nature of events sponsored by donors to raise money for their funds.
Chart 1
Grants are made annually from both endowed and flowthrough funds. Because flowthrough fund balances are distributed in a shorter time period, granting from these funds can materially influence HCF’s total annual amount granted.
As illustrated in Chart 2, grants and community leadership project spending over the past eight years has ranged from $4.7 million to this year’s historic high of $11.5 million. Granting from endowment funds was reduced in 2013 as a result of the decline in investment returns in 2012 which a) lowered the asset base used for the granting calculation (currently four percent of the fund balances), and b) resulted in less income available to grant. Flowthrough granting and expenditures on community leadership projects has ranged from 22 to 56 percent of total granting in any given year and is dependent on the timing and nature of flowthrough and project activity. At 893, the number of grants for this year is 37 percent higher than the eight-year average.
Chart 2
Investments traded in active markets are reported at fair market value. Investments not actively traded are recorded at their cost less any impairment of their value.
To support our strategy of aligning our assets with our mission and to provide a more diverse and robust portfolio, HCF has committed to investing in alternative asset classes including loans to charities and not-for-profits, private debt, real estate, infrastructure and private equity. These alternatives are consistent with the Foundation’s long-term investment horizon and liquidity requirements. Since these investments are not actively traded, they are valued at cost in the investments. These alternatives total $25.8 million.
HCF invests according to policy guidelines established by the Board of Directors. Two committees of the Board oversee investments to ensure compliance with the policy:
As an endowment builder, HCF’s policy focuses on long-term investing and is supported by reserve accounts that are currently at their policy maximum.
The investment policy sets out a total portfolio target asset mix, as well as a range around these targets. The public market investment managers have mandates within this targeted asset mix and use their discretion to invest the portfolios within this range. Chart 3 reflects the current and target asset mix. Note: $25 million of private equity relates to a fund established by a donor and is not part of the asset mix or the consolidated portfolio results.
Chart 3
Two long-term portfolios are invested in the public markets with Jarislowsky Fraser, and Connor, Clark & Lunn. Chart 4 compares those portfolios against benchmarks as follows:
Benchmarks reflect the performance of each market index based on HCF’s specific target asset mix. Comparing actual results to the benchmark measures the value added by investment managers compared to the average market performance. HCF’s investment policy target is a long-term investment return in the 6.5 to 7.5 percent range.
Chart 4
The effect of the global pandemic has materially affected investment returns, resulting in a -8.4 percent public market return for the year. The seven-year annualized return at 6.8 percent is within the targeted investment policy range and is 1.2 percent higher than the 5.6 percent benchmark. As noted in the financial highlights, the current 10-year annualized return of 7.0 percent is in the target range and is higher than the benchmark by 1.2 percent.
Impact investments enable donations to endowed funds to drive positive change beyond granting, because they represent investments of capital that deliver financial returns coupled with positive social and/or environmental outcomes. In addition, these investments provide a pool uncorrelated to the public markets which, in turn, buffers the portfolio from the volatility currently experienced.
More than 15 percent of our long-term assets are in impact investments. Chart 5 illustrates HCF’s impact investing progress over the past five years, with $25 million currently placed or outstanding and another $15 million committed. This brings the total commitment to $40 million, up from $34 million last year. Impact investments cover areas including affordable housing, arts, environment and sustainable development.
Chart 5
Local loans since inception total $9.7 million with $7.1 million outstanding at year end. Chart 6 shows the impact areas our loans have supported. Since the loan program’s 2012 inception, $2.6 million in loan principal has been repaid and recycled as new loans. In addition, the interest from these loans supports HCF granting.
Chart 6
IRP is a Government of Canada program being delivered nationally by partners including Community Foundations of Canada. As the first phase in the government’s long-term investment in social finance, the IRP’s goal is to make social-purpose organizations “investment ready” so they can make a difference in new and innovative ways through their participation in the social finance market. HCF has partnered with community foundations in London and Niagara, and the McMaster Innovation Park to manage the program regionally on behalf of Community Foundations of Canada. The first request for proposals for funding in January created enormous interest nationally and garnered 65 submissions to our regional partnership. Approved funding is expected to be released in June 2020. As an additional benefit, the IRP brought a growing number of potential opportunities for local loans to HCF’s attention.
These investments include private equity, private debt and real estate investments. Many of these investments are long term in nature, are maintained at cost and do not have a regular income stream. As these investments are maintained at cost, their results include interest income and realized gains, but not unrealized gains. Results for these investments are closely monitored and are reported when realized. Chart 7 identifies the investment areas, with $18.0 million placed and a total commitment of $33 million across 21 investments.
Chart 7
Operating expenses for the fiscal year ended March 31, 2020 total $2.5 million and were 2.5 percent higher than last year. Staffing costs related to the Foundation’s 22 employees represent 70 percent of HCF operating costs.
In addition to breaking out cost by type, operating costs are allocated to each of the Foundation’s operating areas: grants administration, community and philanthropic leadership, community relations and knowledge dissemination, development activities, and administration and governance. Examples of community and philanthropic leadership include convening around the city’s critical issues and fostering the growth of philanthropy by sharing staff time and knowledge to support other charities. Charts 8 and 9 illustrate these costs by operating area and by expense type.
Charts 8 and 9
The Foundation’s annual development expenses are not necessarily attributable to the donations received in that year. The nature of donations to the Foundation can result in costs preceding the receipt of the donation by several years (for example, donations through wills). As a result, consistent with the community foundation sector, operating costs are evaluated by a ratio of total operating expenses to average total assets. Ratios fall within a range depending on the size and stage of the community foundation’s development.
Management considers the ratio of 1.26 percent (1.25 percent in 2019), as illustrated in Chart 10, to be within an acceptable range for a foundation of HCF’s size, stage and level of community leadership, compared against benchmarks established in the community foundation sector. We continue to monitor both the actual results and the benchmarks on an ongoing basis.
Chart 10
Hamilton Community Foundation’s total assets of $201 million at March 31, 2020 include balances of HCF funds and funds held on behalf of others at $1.7 million.
Hamilton Community Foundation’s fund balances, illustrated in Chart 11, represent accumulated donations plus the net investment earnings on these donations, minus granting and operating costs. Funds include both endowed and flowthrough funds. Endowed funds are held permanently and grant from investment earnings. Flowthrough funds are fully distributed as grants over a pre-determined term.
Chart 11
The fund balances have grown 55 percent to $198 million at the year ended March 31, 2020 from $128 million in 2013. Donations of $35.1 million included $4.4 million in flowthrough donations that were largely distributed as grants in the year and, as a result, do not remain in the fund balances at year end. This results in a modest total funds balance growth of 4.8 per cent for the year. The number of funds has grown 19 percent to 377 from 318 in 2013.
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