In 1970, seven community-minded citizens, Mr. Fred MacDermid, Q.C., The Honorable Sidney Buckwold, Dr. Austin Forsyth, Mr. G. Blair Nelson, Dr. John Leddy, Mr. Albert Flavelle, and Mr. Allan Tubby, came together to establish Saskatoon Community Foundation. Each made a personal donation to establish an endowment fund. From that beginning, our managed assets stand at over $55 million.
The original Board members recognized the impact a community foundation could have on the community, but they knew it would take time. Did they envision the foundation’s remarkable growth? Did they anticipate the impact on quality of life the foundation would have in the community? Could they have envisioned such wonderful programs as these:
- The redevelopment of the skate shack and accessible trail by the Meewasin Valley Authority;
- The Outreach Van to the Lighthouse Supported Living Inc.;
- Heart of the City Piano, with volunteers teaching music to kids whose families cannot afford a piano;
- Core Neighbourhood Youth Co-op, bringing carpentry and horticulture skills to inner-city youth;
- New environmentally sustainable lighting for Shakespeare on the Saskatchewan, to ensure that our annual summer drama festival continues to prosper;
- families improving their quality of life by purchasing healthy inexpensive food through the Good Food Box program operated by the Child Hunger and Education Program