OTF Grant Strongly Supports NACCA’s Continued Growth  

On Monday, local MPP Dawn Gallagher-Murphy stopped in to meet with the team at the Newmarket African Caribbean Canadian Association (NACCA) to congratulate them on recently receiving a $167,100 Resilient Communities Fund grant from the Ontario Trillium Foundation (OTF). Shelley Wister Smith, an OTF volunteer, was also there to meet with Jerisha Grant Hall, Chair of NACCA, as the non-profit organization begins to implement the plans it has for this two-year long grant. 

“As a government, our goal is to eliminate discrimination by use of educational support systems while advancing the importance of racial equity across the province,” said Dawn Gallagher Murphy, MPP for Newmarket—Aurora. “I am thrilled that NACCA has been awarded this grant to further develop a much-needed support program for local Black youth who have been especially harmed with ongoing incidents of anti-Black racism. We will work together as a community to celebrate our differences and breakdown social barriers so that we are truly lifting one another up.” 

NACCA continues to have its ear to the ground and be shifting to meet the continued needs of the Black community to whom we serve. OTF’s grant will enable NACCA to be poised to develop and implement short-and long-range plans to address new organizational needs to meet increasing demands especially as the community recovers from the impacts of the pandemic.  

With this invaluable funding, NACCA will continue to deliver on its five-year strategic plan, evaluate and scale up current programs and services, seek and develop staff and volunteers to meet present and future programming needs, and especially manage the day-to-day expansion of operational needs as NACCA continues to grow. The funding will also allow for the development of a fundraising strategy so integral to the future of our programming.  

The Ontario Trillium Foundation’s Resilient Communities Fund has also allowed for NACCA to hire a full-time Project Manager to assist with delivering on these important next steps in NACCA’s continued recovery and growth.  

“The significance of this Ontario Trillium Foundation grant cannot be overstated,” said Jerisha Grant Hall, Chair of the Newmarket African Caribbean Canadian Association. “The NACCA Community Centre and team is committed to preserving a legacy for the Black and of African diaspora community, nurturing and ensuring pathways of support to success through programming, engagement and empowerment.” 

The Ontario Trillium Foundation (OTF), an agency of the Government of Ontario, and one of Canada’s leading granting foundations celebrates 40 years of grant-making in Ontario and making a lasting impact in communities. Last year, OTF invested over $110M into 1,022 community projects and partnerships, which included funding for the Government of Ontario’s Community Building Fund. Visit otf.ca to learn more.