Strong, vibrant communities are good for everyone

Kootenay Savings is also helping local students pursue their dreams and ambitions by awarding $54,000 in education awards

by Keith Powell — July 26, 2019

Group of Columbia Valley region recipients.

Columbia Valley region recipients – Columbia Valley Food Bank, Columbia Valley Arts Council and Windermere Elementary School – along with Trisha Raven and Heather Fullerton from Kootenay Savings’ Invermere Branch. — Photo courtesy Kootenay Savings

Since being established in 1969, Kootenay Savings has made it a priority to make a lasting and meaningful impact in the Kootenays. “Year after year, through grants, donations, sponsorships, bursaries and more, Kootenay Savings invests a good portion of our profits back into the communities we serve. Profits made possible by our loyal members and hard-working employees. That’s why it’s so important for us to play a role in enriching the lives of those living, working and playing in the cities and towns we’re so proud to call home,” shares Kootenay Savings Community
Liaison, Aron Burke.

One of the main ways the credit union invests back into the region is through the work of the Kootenay Savings Community Foundation, which this month distributed more than $57,000 in new grants as part of the Foundation’s Spring/Summer granting cycle. The twenty-seven different and diverse community organizations benetting from this latest round of funding include:

Beaver Valley Age Friendly Society $1,000
Castlegar Community Response Network $1,000
Castlegar Sculpturewalk Society $1,500
Columbia Basin Alliance for Literacy - Trail $414
Columbia Valley Arts Council $980
Columbia Valley Food Bank $5,000
Friends of Lardeau River $600
Kaslo Senior Citizens Association $1,000
Kimberley SPARK Society for Youth $5,000
Kootenay Boundary Environmental Education $2,500
Kootenay Lake Independent School Society $4,000
Kootenay Local Agriculture Society $500
Lower Columbia Community Development Team $2,000
MADD Kimberley-Cranbrook $3,000
Nelson & District Museum & Archives $1,000
North Kootenay Lake Community Services $2,500
Salmo Baseball $1,500
Senior's Environmental Development Society $1,500
Slocan Lake Gallery Society $2,015
Trail FAIR Society $5,000
Trail Minor Baseball $1,500
Trail Youth Baseball $1,500
VISAC Gallery $500
West Kootenay Brain Injury Association $1,000
Windermere Elementary School $5,000
Windermere Valley Youth Centre Society $4,500
Ymir Community Watershed Society $1,500

Along with the grants, Kootenay Savings is also helping local students pursue their dreams and ambitions by awarding $54,000 in education awards, bursaries and summer camp sponsorships.

Kootenay Savings Community Foundation Quick Facts

Formed in 2000 to support non-prot cultural, economic, educational, environmental, health and social projects.
Over $4.7 million in grants, endowments and bursaries distributed since inception.
Grant application form and more details available at kscu.com/Community.
Two grant application deadlines each year; March 31 and September 30.

About Kootenay Savings

With corporate offices in Trail, Kootenay Savings is a member-owned credit union with eleven branches throughout the Kootenays, over $1 billion in assets, more than 37,000 members and over 200 employees. In addition to the Community Foundation, Kootenay Savings also delivers wealth management strategies through its wholly owned subsidiary, Kootenay Savings MoneyWorks, and auto and general insurance through Kootenay Insurance Services Ltd.