About these granting programs

Awarding over $450,000 annually, the Community Priorities Fund sustains our biggest granting program. Support for this program comes from over fifty years of donations, beginning with the first gifts the Community Foundation received in 1966. Donors choose this fund as a way to allocate their gifts to support the needs of the day, as represented by applications for funding. This program supports a wide range of projects from communities throughout our region.

What you need to know to apply

Prior to filling out your application, please read through our Grant Application Guidelines to see if your project is eligible for funding. Your organization must be a CRA-recognized qualified donee or apply in partnership with a qualified donee to be eligible. Learn more about qualified donees here.

Support this granting program

As a donor, you can establish an endowment within the Community Priorities Fund. Investment income generated by your endowment will support the twice-yearly grants issued by this program. You can also make a donation online.

Next grant deadline

October 16, 2023 at 4:00 p.m.

About this granting program

The Henry S. Varley Fund for Rural Life was established by local rancher William “Bill” Long and named in memory of his uncle, Henry Stewart Varley. The Varley family ranched southeast of Pincher Creek in the community of Fishburn for a century. The purpose of this fund is to provide support for a high quality of life throughout rural Southwestern Alberta, through organizations, projects, and initiatives that enhance rural communities. Grant applications to this fund are accepted twice yearly.

What you need to know to apply

This fund will grant to projects in the following areas: Innovation, Community Collaboration, Education and Training, and Information and Research Initiatives.

Before you begin your application, we encourage you to read through the Grant Application Guidelines to ensure your project is eligible for funding. Your organization must be a CRA-recognized qualified donee or apply in partnership with a qualified donee to be eligible. Learn more about qualified donees here.

Supporting this granting program

The Varley Fund for Rural Life is a Field of Interest Endowment Fund. Investment income generated by the endowment supports the twice-yearly grants issued by this program. You can also make a donation online.

Next grant deadline

October 16, 2023 at 4:00 p.m.

About this granting program

The Youth in Action Granting Program aims to empower young leaders by supporting youth-led initiatives that will benefit the community. Projects funded through Youth in Action grants must be initiated, led, and organized by residents of Southwestern Alberta up to 25 years of age, in collaboration with a charitable partner.

What you need to know to apply

This granting program accepts applications once per year. Applicants can request a grant of up to $2,000 for their project. To encourage creative, dynamic projects, Youth in Action project proposals are assessed on a case-by-case basis to evaluate how well they exemplify the granting program’s mandate.

Before you begin your application, we encourage you to read through the Grant Application Guidelines to ensure your project is eligible for funding. Applicants must apply in partnership with a qualified donee to be eligible. Learn more about qualified donees here.

Next grant deadline

February 28, 2023 at 4:00 p.m.

About this granting program

The Community Foundation of Lethbridge and Southwestern Alberta and the United Way of Lethbridge and South Western Alberta announce their participation in the Community Services Recovery Fund (CSRF), a one-time investment of $400 million by the Government of Canada to support the charitable sector’s pandemic recovery. The CSRF, which will be facilitated by local Community Foundations, Canadian Red Crosses, and United Ways across the country, will provide Canada’s charitable sector with the tools needed to adapt, modernize, and be better equipped to improve their efficacy, accessibility, and sustainability.

What you need to know

Funding from the CSRF will enable the charitable sector to invest in their own organizational capacity to:

• Adapt the way they deliver services to support the needs of their staff and volunteers;
• Buy equipment such as computers and software;
• Create new ways of working, such as developing new fundraising approaches;
• Provide support for staff and volunteers, such as staff training, supports for mental health and wellbeing; and
• Develop plans to receive funding from diverse sources.

The Community Foundation has $570,000 available to award, while the United Way has $419, 024 available, for a total of $989, 024 to support Southwestern Alberta’s charitable sector.

The Community Foundation will support projects “primarily focused on organizational systems and processes.” Examples include:

• Developing or implementing a new fundraising strategy
• Further investments in contact management systems
• Implementing a new communication plan
• Enhancing a new accounting system
• Conducting a governance review
• Exploring a merger or amalgamation
• Developing a data/privacy strategy or plan

We encourage community service organizations to attend the Community Services Recovery Fund (CSRF) on January 12, 2023 at 12:00 pm.

Join the CSRF team for a walk through of the program and its guidelines. This session will give you insight on the Community Services Recovery Fund, its eligibility criteria, timelines and next steps. We will also go through filling out an application

Register for the webinar here:

About this granting program

To celebrate the 55^th Anniversary of the Community Foundation of Lethbridge and Southwestern Alberta on April 18, 2021, the Community Foundation is pleased to offer 10 grants to eligible organizations in Southwestern Alberta at $5,500 each. The purpose of these one-time grant funds is for community organizations to collaborate on a project that supports the safe re-opening of our community.

This program will support qualified donees that serve the community of Southwestern Alberta as they collaborate with other groups in the community to adapt, create, or enhance public spaces to allow for safe gatherings.

What You Need to know to Apply

This program is eligible to CRA qualified donees, including charities and municipalities, with a business number (BN) located in Southwestern Alberta and requires collaboration with at least one other organization to carryout the project.  Eligible projects will encourage community participation through adapting safe gathering spaces (examples include, but are not limited to: retrofitting parks, trails, and community halls.)

Before you begin your application, we encourage you to read through the Grant Application Guidelines to ensure your project is eligible for funding. Your organization must be a CRA-recognized qualified donee to be eligible. Learn more about qualified donees here.