OCUCF Initiates the CanHelp Program In Support of Earthquake Disaster Relief in Haiti

On January 12th, one of the worst natural disasters hit the most poverty stricken country in the western hemisphere, Haiti.  Tens of thousands of people are dead and close to a million people are injured, without shelter, food and clean water, and have little hope for survival.  Many different organizations are mobilizing relief efforts, and to support this cause, OCUCF has initiated it's CanHelp Disaster Relief Program.  This program was last utilized during the Asian tsunami relief efforts in 2004. 

The program allows credit unions to collect cash or cheque donations from their member-owners and record the donor's information in a simple Excel spreadsheet, to be forwarded later to the Canadian Red Cross through OCUCF.  The Red Cross will issue tax receipts to all donations greater than $10.00.  This "grass-roots" program creates a simplified way for credit unions to collect donations from their member-owners who are looking to donate in a secure manner.

As mentioned in NewsBytes, program details can be downloaded here.  To download the CanHelp Instruction sheet, click here.  To download the Excel spreadsheet used to track individual donations, click here.

To help with fundraising efforts, the Canadian Government announced through the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA) that it will match any individual donations collected, up to a maximum of $50 million.  In order to qualify, these donations must be received before February 12th, and therefore the Foundation will be looking to collect all money from credit unions on or before February 9th.

Please help OCUCF and the Canadian Red Cross help the people of Haiti during this extremely difficult time.  We thank you for your support.

International Program Funding

The Ontario Credit Union Charitable Foundation funds various programs in developing nations in partnership and concert with the Cooperative Development Foundation, the charitable arm of the Canadian Co-operative Association.  The Foundation's donation to international ventures is most often matched by the Canadian International Development Agency of the Government of Canada.  Our objective is to support education programs specifically to improve the health and welfare of those in need, as well as developing cooperatives and Credit Unions that create long term financial benefits for their members.

Close to $1 Million for Emergency Funding

We are pleased to report that the Foundation has been instrumental in providing emergency funding when there is a need.  Since 2005, the Foundation has directed the support of international and provincial charitable causes totalling close to $1 million dollars.

For international or national emergencies, such as the tsunami disaster in Indonesia, hurricane Katrina in the U.S.A., or the Winnipeg floods, funds are generally directed through large organizations like the Canadian Red Cross.

The Foundation has recently supported the following international programs:

1. "Women in Nepal Program", provided thousands of women with knowledge about their personal rights as well as the ability to create cooperatives and Credit Unions to serve the interests of themselves and their families.
2. "HIV/AIDS Youth in Ghana" program has a two-pronged approach.  The focus is on educating youth of their responsibility for personal health and that of their community thorugh Aids education, in addition to encouraging youth to work with their local Credit Unions by developing good saving habits for their long term economic benefit.
3. Funding to rebuild the tsunami damaged villages through the Canadian Red Cross.
4. Funding to rebuild the Sri Lankan Credit Unions, many of which were totally destroyed in the tsunami.

We ask that you consider donating to the Ontario Credit Union Charitable Foundation.  Your donations will save lives and "Make a World of Difference" through the building of communities.