The
following provides brief descriptions of all our Community
Action Projects.
Click here for
a complete list of Leadership Victoria's Community Action Partners.
2009
- 2010 COMMUNITY ACTION PROJECTS
Team Green Acres
Community Partners: Power
to be Adventure Therapy Society and Woodwynn
Farms
The Green Acres team envisioned a project that would
grow community relationships, leadership and food.
The project encompassed three primary goals:
1. Develop leadership skills through the creation and implementation of the
project
2. Foster a community partnership between the project partners
3. Support Woodwynn Farms in a pilot project developing communal garden space
with the participants of Power to Be.
Highlights:
- The team developed and implemented creative garden-focused activities intended
to broaden and enhance the therapeutic experiences for three “Power
to Be” youth groups.
- These activities strengthened the community partnerships between Power to
Be and Mary’s Therapeutic Farm, Essencia Gardens and Woodwynn Farms.
Green Acres’ legacy included a comprehensive photographic documentary
of the activities, the provision of tools, seedlings, seeds and art supplies
and the removal of invasive plant species.
Project Donors and Sponsors: Camosun
College, Victoria Foundation
Team M$icro Solutions
Community Partner: Victoria
Community Micro Lending Society (CML)
Team M$icro Solutions partnered with Victoria Community
Micro Lending Society (CML) to design a mentorship
program for its borrowers in order to provide support
in the start up of their small businesses for a minimum
of one year. The long-term vision of this mentorship
program is that borrowers will in turn become mentors
for future borrowers, and that the successes of these
mentoring relationships, in conjunction with an easy
to follow recruitment and training process, will ensure
sustainability.
Approximately 12 volunteer business-experienced mentors were recruited and
trained to work with the initial five business start-up borrowers from the
Micro Lending Society. The project formed the base for future mentor recruitment
and established a network of support for Micro Lending borrowers.
Highlights:
Created a foundation of qualified mentors from a wide range of backgrounds
Raised awareness of CML’s profile in Victoria
Provided a support network for CML borrowers
Designed a mentor tracking system and developed training resources and manuals
Project Donors and Sponsors: Flynn Printing,
Mud Studio, Whitney Shrieves, Kate Thompson
Team Trail Mix
Community Partner: CRD
Regional Parks
The project involved creating a volunteer Ambassador
Program that would recruit volunteers who will provide
information and assistance to users of Greater Victoria's
walking/biking trail network.
A sustainable program was designed and implemented that engages existing trail
users to be "ambassadors" or information/assistance providers to
other trail users. New and generally younger volunteers were selected who have
the knowledge, skills and familiarity to assist anyone encountered on a trail
in their neighbourhood.
Highlights:
The successful execution of a family-oriented event that was focussed on three
key locations on the Galloping Goose Trail
Both Team Trail Mix and CRD Regional Parks came away from the experience with
a better understanding of the Community Action Project process
The Volunteer Program made (and will continue to make) a positive impact on
the trail experience in Greater Victoria.
Project Donors and Sponsors: ActNow
BC, BCAA, Burnside Gorge Community Association, City
of Victoria’s Cecelia Ravine Advisory Committee,
Demitasse Café & Salt Spring Coffee, Fairway
Foods, Give and Go Cookies, MEC, Out of the Blue Design,
Recreation Sites and Trails BC, Selkirk Place Lodge,
Selkirk Station Bike and Kayak Trek Bike Store, Silk
Road Tea, Victoria Foundation, Woofles Boutique
Team W - The Art of
Re-Gifting
Community Partnesr: Ballet
Victoria, Belfry
Theatre, Intrepid
Theatre, The
Other Guys Theatre, ProArt
Alliance
The Art of Re-Gifting community action project was
a cultural event designed around visual arts, performing
arts, festivals and the art of giving. Team W created
this project with the goal of raising awareness and
increasing support of the arts in Victoria through
a unique event.
Four visual artists each gave a piece of art to four Victoria arts organizations,
who then – in some creative manner – re-gifted the pieces to each
other at a public event organized by the project team and co-hosted by the
four artists and the four organizations.
Highlights:
Provided a platform to increase awareness of the richness of diversity in the
community
Proceeds raised from the auction were donated to the five project partners
New relationships were created between the five organizations, members of the
team and local First Nations artists. This group will continue to collaborate
and to work on future projects such as the 2011 Art of Re-Gifting.
Project Donors and Sponsors: Ann-Marie Rice, Alcheringa
Gallery, BC Association of Aboriginal Friendship Centres, Carey Newman, George
Littlechild, MacGillivray & Associates, Metropol, Sea Cider, Sharps Audio
Visual, Times Colonist, Victoria Conference Centre, Victoria Foundation
2008 - 2009
COMMUNITY ACTION PROJECTS
Team “Bonsai” – The
CASA Project
Community Partner: CAFCA
The
Court Appointed Special Advocate (CASA) project
was designed to help children and youth who are
placed in the foster care system and thrust into
the court
system
(many of who are or will become At-risk Youth). This
team’s initial goal was to develop the structure
and foundation for a child advocacy program in which a volunteer
is appointed
by a judge to stay with a child for the duration of their
time with protective services. As their advocate they
are authorized to relay the child’s wishes to the
judge and court. The project’s primary objective
became to hold a forum involving stakeholders that would
lead to the formation of a steering committee to pursue
the implementation of the CASA program in Victoria. A
summary of the forum’s proceedings is available
through the project’s website at www.victoriacasa.org.
Project Donors and Sponsors: Victoria
Foundation, BC Adoption Permanency Fund, Vancity,
Province of BC, Saanich
Police Department, University of Victoria, Ambrosia
Conference Centre, Rogers Chocolate, Bernard Callebaut,
Michael
Piraino, Trudi Brown, and Wendy Harris
Team “LaserBeam” – The
Rainbow Kitchen
Community Partner: St. Saviour’s
Anglican Church
The Rainbow Kitchen is open five days a week in the
Vic West community, serving hot and nutritious lunches
to those in need of a helping hand. Meals are made using
donations and produce grown in the garden, located behind
the kitchen. Between 100 and 140 people rely on the kitchen
for support every day. Team LaserBeam quadrupled
the garden's growing capacity, installed a micro-irrigation
system, and composting system. These improvements
enabled the kitchen to further increase the amount of
locally grown produce incorporated into each meal while
utilizing a sustainable and community-based methodology.
In addition to enhancing the existing garden, Team
LaserBeam also promoted a 'Grow A Row' campaign
in the neighbourhood. This initiative encouraged
residents to grow an extra row in their garden with
produce to be donated to the kitchen. The team worked
on building a web site for the Rainbow Kitchen to further
promote
sponsorship and volunteer opportunities
for this non-profit organization.
Project Donors and Sponsors: TD
Friends of the Environment, Victoria Foundation,
Sun Life Financial,
Susan Wegwitz,
Eileen Robinson, Donna Denman, Margaret Bachmann,
Ken Bennett, Emery Electric, Bay West Rona, Chris
Fraser, Honeycomb Webworks, Vicki English, MacNutt’s, O’Dell
Slinger Service, Kinetic Construction, Applied
Office Solutions, and C and C Growers.
Team “Synergy” – “Talkin’ ‘bout
our Generations”
Community Partner: Saanich Parks and
Recreation
The project's focus was to explore the potential for intergenerational
programming in Saanich with the objective of bringing
youth and seniors together. The partners were seeking shared
learning, a better understanding and tolerance of others
in our
community. The team's research provided the
Community Action Partner, Saanich Parks and Recreation (Saanich)
with data to kick start inter-generational programming.Team
Synergy and Saanich programming staff hosted an inter-generational
Coffee House as a test of the desire to participate in
inter-generational programs. Seniors (50+) and youth were
recruited to participate as part of the coffee house
entertainment. In addition, Team Synergy and Saanich
then hosted a focus group of youth and seniors to asses the potential for inter-generational programming
and to clarify common areas of interests for programming
considerations.
Project Donors and Sponsors: Saanich
Parks & Recreation,
Victoria Foundation, Safeway, Cedar Hill Recreation,
Gordon Head Recreation, Saanich Centennial Branch
Greater Victoria Library, Our Place Society, Leif
Langvand,
and Alex Martinez.
Team “Witty” – Witty’s
Lagoon Teaching Shelter
Community Partner: CRD
Regional Parks and Victoria Natural History Society
This
team constructed a new teaching shelter at
Witty’s Lagoon Regional Park. This open
air classroom will be the first of its kind and will
facilitate the delivery of environmental education programs
for children, youth, families and the public at large.
It is expected the Nature Classroom will serve as a staging
area for the more than 80,000 community residents who
visit Witty’s Lagoon each year, 9,500 of whom
attend CRD Regional Parks guided walks and events.
The lasting
legacy of this project is the creation of environmental
stewards that value the natural world and have the
education to help preserve it. To learn more about
this project,
please visit www.vicnhs.bc.ca/wittys/.
Project Donors and Sponsors: Victoria
Natural History Society, Capital Regional District
Parks, Mountain Equipment
Co-op, Shell Canada, BC Transmission Corporation, Westshore
Lions Club, Kinsmen Club of Victoria , Kiwanis Club
of Victoria, West-Mont School, Pemberton Holmes, Victoria
Foundation, Metchosin Country Store, Sooke Harbour
House,
Aggressive Excavating, Rocky Point Metal Craft, Millinear
Lumber, Coast Mountain Milling, Tower Ready Mix, Super
Save Fence Rentals, Richlock Rentals, Victoria Contracting
and Municipal Maintenance, My Chosen Pizza, and Island
Crush.
2007-
2008 COMMUNITY ACTION PROJECTS
Art Speaks
Community Action Partner: Big Brothers and Big Sisters of Victoria
Art Speaks was a combination of art and mentoring for vulnerable youth, designed to help develop the self-esteem, self-confidence, self-awareness, creativity and social skills that young people need to reach their potential within their community.
Gorge Waterway Discovery Centre
Community Action Partner: SeaChange Marine Conservation Society
The former concession stand at Esquimalt Gorge Park was turned into a vibrant environmental space -- a place where the whole community can experience environmental education and restorative initiatives which focus on the connection between forest, wetland, stream and marine environments.
Green Spaces Project
Community Action Partner: Reynolds Secondary School
This project involved restoration, revitalization and enhancement of common school areas and community shared grounds. The students and staff wished to create a community-shared vision of an ecologically sustainable future.
STEPs – Sustainable Transformation to Employment Programs
Community Action Partners: Harrison
Place, Victoria Women’s
Transition House
STEPs aimed to help the women of Harrison Place to secure meaningful employment and improve their lifestyle. After creating a needs assessment report and developing two workshops to discover and explore ways of successful transition to employment, 13 solutions were proposed.
2006 - 2007 COMMUNITY
ACTION PROJECTS
Project for Healthy Families
Community Action Partners: Mary
Manning Centre for Child Abuse Prevention (MMC) and Counselling Society of Victoria
The Project for Healthy Families provided MMC with a comprehensive study of current prevention activities and programs available in Greater Victoria. The team also focused on repainting, furnishing and redecorating the MMC Family Room to provide comfort to families in need of assistance.
MORE Victoria
Community Action Partners: Coldstar
Freight Systems Inc., Silver
Threads, James Bay New Horizons Society
This project focused on establishing a network to increase the availability of food for seniors’ service partner agencies through the recovery and redirection of food otherwise destined for disposal from corporate and institutional partners.
Street Feet
Community Action Partner: Victoria Cool Aid Society
Community Action Partnerships were developed with the Salvation Army Thrift Stores and Mayfair Dental Clinic to resolve the storage challenge at Streetlink and provide ongoing donations of clothing and hygiene products. The project team also developed plans for the school sock donation events and managed a Fun Run in support of the Cool Aid Shelter Program.
Urban Rain Garden
Community Action Partner: Victoria West Elementary School
A rain garden was built in the school as an interactive classroom to provide students with a way to explore issues of sustainability and to discover ways in which their environment can be improved. The garden also provides teachers with a medium to demonstrate sustainability principles.
2005-
2006 COMMUNITY ACTION PROJECTS
Opening Hearts, Opening Minds
Community Action Partner: Our Place
This team chose to focus on homelessness and poverty by working with Our Place to help introduce the services provided by this new organization to the broader community. The goal was also to create understanding and acceptance of homelessness and poverty.
Neighbourhood Threads
Community Action Partners: Saanich
Neighborhood Place and Silver Threads
This project involved the recruitment of senior volunteers to read to children, bridging the gap between the ages. The project united two agencies through the vehicle of literacy with an intergenerational relationship.
Footprints
Community Action Partner: Boys and Girls Club of Greater Victoria
‘Welcome’ and ‘Independence’ kits were developed for local youth either entering into, or leaving, government care. These kits contained practical items and community resource information to help youth make successful transitions into new stages in their lives.
Project Vital City
Community Action Partner: Victoria Foundation
A painting depicting ‘community’ was created by the renowned Ted Harrison ‘Victoria Visions’. A studio art class at Lambrick Park enlarged the image and created a giant ‘paint by numbers’, panels of which were painted by different community organizations in Victoria.
2004-
2005 COMMUNITY ACTION PROJECTS
2003-
2004 COMMUNITY ACTION PROJECTS
2002-
2003 COMMUNITY ACTION PROJECTS
2001-
2002 COMMUNITY ACTION PROJECTS
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